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'LIBRARY OF CONGRESS.' 






|opgrigW |o. 



NITED STATES OP AMERICA. 



4*J/l 



tachyhippodamia; 



OR, 



THE NEW SECRET OF 



TAMIN G HORSES. 



GIVING FULL DIRECTIONS 

HOW TO BREAK AND RIDE COLTS ; TO TAME THE MOST VICIOUS HORSES AND 
GENTLE THEM TO ALL KINDS OF VEHICLES OR WORK ; TO BREAK THEM 
OF KICKING OR ANY OTHER BAD TRICKS; TO TEACH THEM ANY 
KINDS OF TRICKS OR ACTIONS ; ETC., ETC. 

WITH NUMEROUS VALUABLE RECEIPTS FOR DISEASES OF HORSES, MULES, C0W8» 

ETC. J HOW TO FATTEN HORSES, COWS, ETC.. HOW TO TEACH TURKEYS 

AND ANIMALS TO DANCE, HOW TO TAME DEER, ETC., ETC. 

BY 

WILLIS J. POWELL. 

TO WHICH IS ADDED 

THE BREAKING, TRAINING, AND TAMING HORSES. 
B Y J. S. RAREY. 



WBlitl) Numerous Ellustratfans. 




Ulihl 



Hubbard Bros., Publishers, 
4 

PHILADELPHIA, PA. 



T> 






Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1874, by 

HUBBARD BROS., 
In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 






t: 



TO THE READER 



Gentle Eeader : The work you are going to 
peruse is not a voluminous one, neither did I take 
any pains whatever as to the elegance of the style. 
I wrote to make myself understood by the un- 
learned as well as the learned. The price of the 
work may seem high, on account of the small num- 
ber of pages it contains : but it must be recollected 
that it encloses the revelation of a secret that has 
filled thousands of the wise and unwise with aston- 
ishment. I have received, as a gratification, more 
than two thousand dollars, from several Mexican 
gentleman, for breaking a single horse, in this 
manner, in their presence. I shall always feel 
grateful for the kind and generous reception I 
every where met with, when travelling through 
their country. From Louisiana to Mexico — from 
the Californias to Guatemala — and all over the 



IV PREFACE. 

Mexican states, when I have been travelling, I 
never asked for lodging without its being imme- 
diately granted — I never asked for a meal of vict- 
uals and was refused : the proprietor of a private 
house would feel himself injured, if you should 
offer him money for receiving you. You may ex- 
cept from this rule some poor Indian, who some- 
times will admit of your offer, when you insist on 
his receiving some trifle ; But a wealthy farmer, 
or one a little at his ease, would spurn the idea of 
selling his hospitality. I speak of none of their 
qualities but that of hospitality, which by the by, 
is a great one, and very much recommended by 
St. Paul. It is true, I lost nearly twenty thou- 
sand dollars, which were deposited in a store, by 
a revolution: but, in what country is a man's 
property safe in revolutionary times ? 

Several Mexican gentleman solicited me to 
publish this secret in their country, but I con- 
stantly refused to do it; for I always intended 
doing it in my own native country — not doubting 
but that I should meet with encouragement from 
my own countrymen. I was always jealous of 
having the honor of being the first that ever made 
it known to the world. It is probable that the 
famous Irish "whisperer," Sullivan, who died in 
1810, possessed the same secret, or some other very 
much like it, as it appears from the astonishing 



PREFACF. V 

things related of him, concerning what he did 
upon horses. The reader will, however, observe, 
that Sullivan lived in a country where horses 
were raised as they are in England and in the 
N orthern states : that is, among men and familiar 
to man. But the horses which I have generally 
had to deal with, (though I have had every kind,) 
had been running wild, in the plains and woods, 
for four, five, six and even ten years, and which, 
during that time, had never had a rope on them. 
And besides, the horses of New Spain have always 
been noted for being remarkably fiery and unman- 
ageable. I have gentled a horse in Texas, which, 
before that day had, in all probability, never seen 
a man — a stud of eight or nine years of age, as 
wild as a deer when taken an hour before. I be- 
gan the operation, and in one hour made him fol- 
low me without pulling him by the halter, and 
little boys got upon him bare-backed, and saddled 
and rode him about : in a word, he was a gentle 
horse. Those horses are called in Spanish Meste- 
nos, (pronounced Mestaneyos and not Mustangs.) 
What makes me think that Sullivan, as well as 
he that did the same in England a hundred years 
ago, made use of the same means as I do, is, that 
when I was now and then breaking a horse, 
(which generally took me three or four hours, al- 
though, as I said above, I have done it even in 



VI PKEFACE. 

half an hour, though rarely,) and afterwards went 
into a town, the people flocked about to see me, 
saying to their friends, "This is the man that 
breaks a horse in half an hour." Now the same 
has been published of Sullivan: most probably 
they mentioned the shortest space of time he had 
done it in, for it is likewise said of him, that some- 
times he shut himself up with the horse all night. 

Sometimes I have met with an extremely wild 
horse, which seemed to be gentled, as by enchant- 
ment, in a few minutes. I have gentled one of 
this description in ten minutes, so as to lead him, 
make him follow me everywhere I pleased, and 
ride him with as great safety as if he had been 
gentled twenty years before. But this is not a 
general rule. 

The reader is here presented, in the explanation 
of this secret, with a specimen of the wonderful 
powers of the tact upon animals, and at the same 
time, with a moral lesson of patience and gentle- 
ness — virtues as necessary to get along through 
life among men, as they are when used in taming 
horses ; and the exception to the general rule — I 
mean those that are to be treated with rigor — is 
not, perhaps, less rare. I am fully persuaded, that 
almost every class of people will reap some benefit 
or pleasure from the perusal of these pages. The 
naturalist sees in it a lesson of Nature itself. The 



PREFACE Vll 

moralist admires in it the display of gentleness, 
patience and perseverance ; and every man who 
rides a horse may some day or other find some 
advantage in consulting it. 

I have endeavored to render this little work as 
useful as possible, on three accounts. Firstly, on 
account of the profits arising from the sale of a 
useful work ; secondly, for the credit one gets as 
the author of something good; and lastly, on ac- 
count of the satisfaction every generous mind must 
feel in becoming useful to his fellow creatures. I 
have been most generously encouraged by the in- 
habitants of Attakapas, where I had resided so 
many years. As soon as I began my subscription 
they almost universally became subscribers. In 
the town of St Martinsville, only three or four in- 
dividuals refused to subscribe. In Opelousas I 
met with a kind reception from most of the people 
to whom I presented the list for subscription. At 
Fausse River, Pointe Coupe, Plaquemine, and 
down to New Orleans, they almost universally sub- 
scribed. I shall always feel grateful for their 
kind reception. Encouragement is the deepest 
and dearest debt that a writer can incur. 

I never declared myself to be the discoverer of 
this secret till the year 1824, when I arrived in 
the Mexican states. I had my reasons for so do- 



Vlll PREFACE. 

ing. Never did a people express more surprise 
and astonishment at any extraordinary event, 
than the Mexicans did at my first performance on 
my arrival among them ; and more especially on 
account of my being a foreigner ; for it is well 
known that the Mexicans, rich and poor, high and 
low, pride themselves upon being the best horse- 
men in the world. And I think there is no for- 
eigner that ever travelled among them, and ob- 
served them as I have, but will readily agree in 
ranking them among the first as to agility, skill 
and elegance, when mounted upon their beautiful 
Andalusian steeds. If the Mexican ladies are 
admired by all foreigners for their natural, easy, 
unaffected, genteel carriage — surpassing, if possi- 
ble, in that respect, the elegant Louisiana ladies 
— so does the Mexican, when mounted on a fine 
Xaral steed, equal, if not surpass, any other rider 
in the world. For this very reason, I was every 
where received with the greatest cordiality and 
applause, for no people knew how to appreciate 
better than they a discovery of so surprising a 
nature. 

I wish the reader to observe, that in explaining 
the operation of the secret of gentling a horse, I 
have always supposed the horse to be one that re- 
quired the whole secret, in order to be gentled, 



PREFACE. ix 

though a man meets with many that do not require 
one-third of what I there lay down : but it is bet- 
ter to do too much than too little in this case, so I 
shall say no more about it here. Vale, ya es 

TARDE, BUENAS NOCHES TENGA USTED SENOR 
CABALLERO. 

THE AUTHOR. 



CONTENTS. 



m ♦ ■ * ■ 



The Prologue, in which I mention the 
time I discovered this secret, and what 
gave rise to the desire I had of making 
such a discovery, and why I did not wish 
people to know that I had made it, as well 
as my reasons for making use of smells, 
&c, &c. 17 

Poinsett's Certificate — he then was Minister 
Plenipotentiary of the United States of 
America to Mexico. 26 

General Guerreros' Letter of Recommen- 
dation. 26 

The Marquis be Eayas' Certificate. 27 

Observation upon Horses in general, and 
w T hat led me to the discovery of breaking 
them in a few hours. 31 

The Secret. In the explanation of the Se- 
cret is related the astonishing effect it had 
upon a wild boar, which I tamed in a few 
hours, in the state of Neuvo Leon. 35 



Xll CONTENTS. 

How to deal with Refractory Horses, which 
have been gentled for a long time in the 
common way. 61 

How to deal with a skittish Horse. 63 

How to deal with a Horse that will not suffer 
one to touch or handle his ears. 64 

An example of a vicious Horse, which would 
not sutler himself to be bridled by any one, 
and which I cured of that vice in a few 
hours. 65 

How to manage a kicking horse, so as to 
cure him of that vice in a very short time. 67 

How to manage a Horse that kicks up, so as 
to break him of that vicious habit. 68 

How to manage a kicking horse, so as to be 
able to handle his feet with facility. 69 

To teach a horse, so that he will not let a per- 
son, dressed in a certain manner,come nigh 
him 70 

To teach your horse, so that he will not let 
no one but yourself come near him. 72 

How to prevent a Horse from pulling upon 
his bridle reins, in order to break them. 73 

The Mexican Mode of Preventing a horse 
from breaking his bridle. 74 



CONTENTS. Xlll 

How to manage a Horse that gets the studs, 
or that stops and will not advance a step, 
when you put him to the plough or cart, 
&c. 74 

How to teach a Horse to lie down at the 
word of command. 75 

To teach a horse to count any number. 77 

Easy Method of Fattening a Horse in a short 
time 77 

A remedy for a horse that will not fatten 
though well fed. 79 

To Prevent a Horse's back from getting sore 
even on a long journey. 80 

How to treat a horse that gets foundered upon 
the road, when on a journey. 81 

How to treat a horse upon a journey. 82 

A Horse that it apt to Stumble through care- 
lessness, and not on account of the Bad 
Construction of his Shoulders. 83 

How to break a Mule by the secret, and the 
difference there is to be observed between 
a horse and a mule. 84 

flow Thales corrected a Mule from the vi- 
cious habit of lying down with its load of 
salt, every time it crossed a certain river. 86 

How to make a dull horse appear mettlesome 
and full of fire for a short time. 88 

2 



XIV. CONTENTS. 

That part, or those parts of the Mexican 
states, in which the best race of horses are 
to be found. 89 

Caution to be observed in cutting or paring 
the hoofs of horses. 92 

Caution to those who raise horses and mules. 93 

How to accustom a horse to stay in a place 
that w r as raised in another. 93 

To make a gentle horse, not used to a car- 
riage go in it, 94 

A horse that stops, and refuses to go when in 
a carriage. 96 

A mode of breaking wild horses very differ- 
ent from that discovered by me. 97 

Another way of breaking them, by stopping 
up their ears. 98 

Advice to farmers, concerning the gentling 
of young cows. 98 

The astonishing manner in which I tamed a 
wild deer, which was roped by a Guastecan 
as it came out of the woods. 99 

A remedy for an Ox that lies down, and won't 
get up. 102 

A curious method of teaching Turkies to 
dance at the sound of a triangle, or any 
other musical instrument. 103 



CONTENTS. XV 

A remedy for the gripes or colic in horses. 1 06 

Op the Botts. 107 

Of the Blind staggers. 107 

Rarey's Method. — The three fundamental 

principles of Rarey's Theory. 109 

How to succeed in getting the Colt from pas- 
ture. 114 

How to stable a Colt without trouble. 115 

Time to reflect. 117 

The kind of halter. 117 

Remarks on the horse. * 118 

Experiment with the robe, 119 

Suggestions on the habit of smelling. 121 

Prevailing opinion of horsemen. 122 

Remarks on PowePs treatment. 1 24 

How to govern horses of any kind. 124 

How to proceed if your horse be of a stubborn 

disposition 128 

How to halter and lead a colt. 130 

How to lead a colt by the side of a broken 

horse. 133 



XVI CONTENTS. 

How to lead a colt into the stable, and hitch 
him, without having him pull on the halter. 135 

The kind of bit, and how to accustom the 
horse to it. 137 

How to saddle a colt. 138 

How to mount the colt. 140 

How to ride the colt. 143 

The proper way to bit a colt. 145 

How to drive a horse that is very wild and 
has any vicious habits. 146 

On Balking. 150 

To Break a horse to Harness. 156 

How to Hitch a horse in a Sulky. 156 

How to make a horse lie down. 158 

How to make a horse follow you. 159 

How to make a horse stand without holding. 161 



TACHYHIPPODAMIA. 



In the year 1811, whilst residing in Georgia, I 
read an account of a man who lived more than a 
hundred years ago, who would take any wild horse, 
and shut himself up with him in a small yard or 
stable, and at the end of a few hours, come out 
with the horse perfectly gentle. Nothing was ever 
known about the means he employed in gentling 
him, for he died without ever communicating his 
secret to any one. I always possessed a great 
share of curiosity : therefore, as well to gratify it 
as to become useful to myself and others, I made 
a great many experiments upon young horses, but 
without success. I ran great risks in these experi- 
ments, but the danger, far from discouraging me, 
animated me the more to make new trials. At 

the end of the year 1811, I came to Louisiana, 

2* 



18 TAMING HORSES. 

where there were many wild horses. I renewed 
my experiments. After having met with many 
difficulties, I discovered a secret in 1814, on my 
plantation in the Attakapas, by which I broke a 
horse in three hours. The horse always remained 
gentle. By the same method, I broke another; 
but two days after, I found him almost as wild as 
ever. This perplexed me very much — why one 
horse should remain gentle and the other not. I 
broke two more, and undertook a fifth, which I 
abandoned after several trials. This took place be- 
tween seven and nine o'clock in the morning. I 
then thought the application of the secret ought to 
be varied. Accordingly, after having adopted and 
rejected a great many ways of applying it, I fell upon 
one which proved to be the best. At eleven o'clock, 
I went in again to the horse; but when he saw me, 
he reared and pitched and kicked in a most terrific 
manner. I stopped, notwithstanding, stood still a 
few minutes, and then began the operation, and 
saw, with pleasure, that at half past four he was 
perfectly gentle, and always remained so; for I 
had already discovered this last most important 
part of the secret — of having them always remain 
gentle — and I never have revealed it to any living 
person. 

To give an idea of this mode of gentling horses, 
I will relate a few circumstances of the last men- 



TAMING HORSES. 19 

tioned horse. He was going on eight years old, 
had always run in the prairie since he had been 
branded, was a stud of a most fiery, ferocious dis- 
position, and had never been roped from the time 
he had been branded. To get him into the yard 
where I gentled him, we were obliged to tie his legs 
and drag him in, and no one durst go into the yard 
where he was let loose. He ran at any one, when 
confined in the yard, with as much fury as a lion 
or tiger would have done, and he used his teeth 
and fore feet with as much dexterity as if he had 
been trained up to it from a colt. After I led him 
out, I let the saddle fall over his heels, girted him 
tight and cruppered him. Several boys got upon 
him, rode him about the yard, tied a dry ox-hide 
to his tail, and rode him out in this manner into 
the prairie, without his showing the least sign of 
fear, either at the rattling of the hide, or at any 
other object he met with in the prairie. The next 
day, they rode him to the town, in the midst of a 
great concourse of people; for it was a holiday. 
He passed among them with as little fear as if he 
had been raised in the town. When he came home, 
he followed any one without pulling him by the 
halter. He let any one handle his feet, and take 
them up with as much ease as they could those of 
any plough horse. I declare that, in thus gentling 
this animal, I made use of no intoxicating bever- 



20 TAMING HORSES. 

age, or smell, or any other means whatever, that 
might tend to stupify him, or diminish his natural 
vigor or spiritedness in the least : but, on the con- 
trary, horses thus gentled are fit for immediate use, 
with all their vigor, as they do not become poor 
and broken down by length of time and bad usage, 
as it happens with spirited horses gentled in the 
common way, with much cost and danger. This 
is not the only advantage of the secret. It enables 
the most timid man to break a horse, without dan- 
ger or fear; for it consists in gentling him com- 
pletely, before you attempt to get on him. 

I have broken an immense number of wild 
horses, in the Mexican provinces, of the most fiery 
and spirited dispositions; and have certificates 
from the President, Vice-President, and many of 
the most respectable citizens of that Kepubiic, who 
have been eye-witnesses to this performance. In 
the City of Mexico, General Maison, Captain 
Hotchkiss and others, strangers, then in Mexico, 
have seen me perform. ^ 

This secret, though simple, requires a clear ex- 
planation, and how to be applied according to 
the three different kinds of horses : for, though a 
man should discover enough of the secret to break 
some of the common horses of this country, he still 
would meet with many, even here, that he could 
not break, and would completely fail among the 



TAMING HORSES. 21 

high blooded Spanish studs. But, by perfectly 
knowing the secret, he will find them even easier 
to be gentled than almost any others. 

There are three kinds of wild horses. The first 
of these appear to fear nothing, and when confined 
will run at a man with incredible fierceness. The 
second appear only to fear man. The third class 
appear to be afraid of every thing they meet with, 
when separated from the rest of the horses. Many 
of the Spanish horses belong to the first class, and 
frequently suffer themselves to be killed before 
they can be broken in the common way, and yet 
they are easily gentled by my secret. Now, it is 
positively necessary to vary the application of the 
secret according to the disposition of the horse to 
be gentled ; all of which will be clearly and ex- 
tensively explained in the publication of this work. 
The work will, besides, contain some few observa- 
tions upon horses in general, and in what part of 
the Mexican provinces the best race of horses is to 
be found, &c, and an easy manner of fattening a 
horse in a short time. Likewise, the Mexican mode 
of preventing horses from breaking their bridles — 
and how to prevent a horse's back from getting sore 
even on long journeys: all of which I have proved 
by experience. How to teach a horse, so that in a 
few days he will not suffer a person dressed in a 
certain manner to ride him or come near him. To 



22 TAMING HORSES. 

teach one, so that in a few days he will suffer no 
one to ride him but his master. 

At the time I discovered this secret, I was teach- 
ing, (and had been for some time,) the public 
school or college of Attakapas on my plantation, 
close to the town, and in my own buildings ; for 
the edifice designed for that purpose had been 
burnt down some time before. I received, besides 
what each student paid me for board and tuition a 
compensation for the use of my buildings, as well 
as the annual pension from the government of the 
state of Louisiana ; and as I taught the Latin and 
Greek languages, as well as the French, English 
and Spanish, I had a great number of students, 
from different parts of the state, and from other 
states, which rendered my business pretty lucrative. 
This was one reason why I did not turn my atten- 
tion at that time to the gain I might expect to reap 
from this discovery. 

In 1815, I met with a man by the name of 
Thomas Drinnen, who appeared to me rather ec- 
centric in some respects, but an active, intelligent 
man, and very fond of horses. I told him I had 
discovered a secret to break them in a few hours. 
He wanted me to reveal it to him. I told him I 
would let him know enough of it to astonish the 
public, if he would go to Attakapas with me ; for 
it was in the time of vacation, and I was on the 



TAMING HOUSES. 23 

Mississippi, on my way home. He said he could 
not, but would come there some time afterwards, 
if I would give him some of the ingredients to 
make trials with where he was then going. I ac- 
1 cordingly supplied him with certain materials, (the 
better to disguise the real secret,) one of which 
was that callous substance growing upon a horse's 
fore legs, called the spur ; likewise, the sweat taken 
from under a man's arm was to be used ; the sweat 
of a horse, mare's milk, &c. Said Drennen really 
believed that these materials were efficacious in 
gentling a horse. I now declare to the world, that 
I had heard of some of them, and made use of the 
others in my experiments, but found them without 
the least effect. 

In 1819, Drinnen came to Attakapas. I never 
had mentioned to any one that I knew such a secret. 
On the contrary, I came into Mr. Grigg's inn, then 
and still existing at St. Martinsville, distant from 
my (then) plantation a half a mile, pretending to 
be astonished at what Drinnen was relating con- 
cerning horses, and at the same time incredulous, 
offering him a gratification of one hundred dollars, 
to see him break one of the wild horses of this 
country in so short a time. Mr. Gabriel Fuselier 
told him that he would do the same, if he should 
succeed in his essay upon any one of the wild horses 
upon his plantation, ;which was about two miles 



24 TAMING HORSES. 

from the town. He accepted the offer, and the 
following day was decided upon for the trial ; at 
which time he performed, and to the satisfaction 
of every one. But I had given him no further in- 
sight into the secret than this first part of it, more 
to see what impression it would have upon the 
public, than for any thing else, as my employment 
and standing in society were such that I did not 
like to appear before such a multitude of my ac- 
quaintances as a horse-breaker. This was, how- 
ever, a foolish prejudice; for Fulton by the dis- 
covery of the means of making a boat advance 
with more velocity by the application of steam 
power, w r as not, on that account, looked upon as a 
common boatman. 

After these experiments of Drinnen, to whom I 
had communicated so small a part of the secret, I 
w T as fully convinced that a large fortune might be 
made in almost any country with the secret, such 
as I knew it ; and, as I understood the Spanish lan- 
guage, I agreed with Drinnen to go first to Ha- 
vana and then to New Spain, and take him with 
me. Accordingly, I sent him to New Orleans, to 
fit out a small schooner we had bought in New- 
town. But he took the fever and died, and I con- 
tinued my occupations with success for several 
years, till I had accumulated a handsome property. 
Shortly after, I became security for several persons, 



TAMING HORSES. 25 

three of whom left me to pay for them: at the 
the same time, I had been robbed of six thousand 
three hundred dollars in the city of New Orleans, 
and had lost one thousand nine hundred dollars 
upon the steam-boat Teche. As property had 
fallen to almost nothing, I sacrificed every thing, 
to pay other people's debts, and in 1824 w T ent by 
land through Texas to Tamaulipas, where I re- 
ceived a splendid gratification from the governor 
of the state, Don Bernardo, Gutierrez de Lara, 
Don Felipe de la Garza, general of division, and 
from several other gentlemen who were present at 
a performance which took place in the town and 
sea-port of Soto la Marina. From thence I went 
to Mexico with ray family, where I performed be- 
fore the President, Vice President, the Marquis of 
Vivanco, Count de Regla Y Jala, General Guer- 
rero, and several of the first characters of Mexico, 
in 1825, in the month of July. Our Envoy, Mr. 
Joel R. Poinsett, whom I had the honor of knowing 
personally at that time, can bear witness of the 
veracity of the signatures of the above-named gen- 
tlemen, as well as of their standing, all of whom 
gave me certificates which I have now in my pos- 
session, and some of which I shall publish in this 
work. 

Here must be inserted the following extracts, 
the originals of which I have in my possession : as 
3 



26 TAMING HORSES. 

a confirmation of which I will first put down Mr. 
Poinsett's : 

Legation of the United States of America, ) 

Mexico, November 15/^, 1835. j 

The undersigned, Envoy Extraordinary and 
Minister Plenipotentiary of the United States of 
America in Mexico, hereby certifies: that every 
faith and credit are to be placed in the documents 
and certificates which have been given in this coun- 
try to Willis J. Powell, while a resident in these 
countries. They are signed by gentlemen of the 
highest respectability; and there is no reason to 
doubt that he possesses, in an uncommon degree, 
the art of taming, in an incredible short time, the 

wildest and most unruly horses. 

J. K. Poinsett. 
[A true Copy.] 

[ TRANSLATION. ] 



Captain General's Office of the South, \ 
Mexico, July 27th, 1825. j 

Don Vincente Guerrero to all Gentlemen Gover- 
nors, Military Commanders, Civil Authorities, 
and Inhabitants in general of the United Mexi- 
can States — Greeting : 

Gentlemen : The astonishing faculty of Willis 
J. Powell, in taming wild horses in a few hours, 
was recommended to me by persons of the highest 
respectability, and in whom I place entire confi- 



TAMING HORSES. 27 

dence. They have written to me in his favor, that 
I might facilitate him to perform in this city. He 
has verified the same to the entire satisfaction of 
all the beholders ; and having resolved to continue 
his operations in other parts of the Federation, 
where he is now about to go, I recommend him, 
gentlemen, to your favor and protection, not doubt- 
ing in the least but that you will be highly grati- 
fied with the acquaintance of a gentleman who has 
made a discovery of so much utility, and which, 
gentlemen, you will know how to appreciate, as 
persons who desire to encourage ail useful improve- 
ments, or any thing that may tend to enlighten 
your fellow citizens: assuring you that I shall be 
very thankful for whatever kindness or favor you 
shall have dispensed to this citizen. It is what I 
expect from your natural goodness. God preserve 
your lives many years, &c:, &c. 

Vincente Guerrero. 



Certificate of the Marquis of the Mine of Ray as, in the 
State of Guanajuato, in the Capital City of the same 
name. 



[TRANSLATED FROM THE SPANISH.] 



Citizen Willis J. Powell, a naturalist, and native 
of New York, of whose astonishing dexterity in 



28 TAMING HORSES. 

gentling wild horses in a few hours, I had already 
been informed, (from several respectable gentlemen, 
who had been eye-witnesses to the same in the city 
of Mexico,) arrived in this city on the 20th of the 
present month. I immediately sent for him, offer- 
ing him a handsome gratification to give us a 
proof of his ability. He verified the same by put- 
ting it in practice on the 27th, at the mine of Rayas, 
with a wild colt, chosen on purpose from among 
the wildest and fiercest of a party of forty of 
them, which had just arrived there to be gentled 
for the service of the said mine,, in one of the sta- 
bles of which he began the operation at three 
quarters past ten in the forenoon : and myself, as 
well as several other spectators of this performance, 
were struck with amazement at beholding this 
horse at two o'clock so gentle, that after having 
been led around in every direction by the halter, 
suffered himself to be rode both by men and boys, 
as well bare-backed as saddled, tightly girted and 
cruppered — permitting them to get upon him on 
either side. After a short time, being let loose, he 
followed any one who went before and motioned 
to him with gentleness, without pulling him by the 
halter — proceeding to where several persons w r ere 
standing without showing any signs of fear at 
coming up to them, and passing in the midst of 
them, permitting any one to lift up his feet and 



TAMING HORSES. 29 

handle him with as much ease a3 they could 
handle the gentlest plough-horse. Being put into a 
large yard, he ate with the rest of the wild horses, 
his companions, and in going a second time to 
catch him, there was no need of throwing the rope 
upon him, he letting any one come up before him 
and put the halter upon him. The third day, he 
was rode down from the mine to this city, where he 
was shod all around, standing perfectly still when 
the blacksmith took up his feet, and never flinching 
at the stroke of the hammer. Being shod and led 
out before a great number of people, the servant 
threw the saddle over his head, then let it fall over 
his heels and on either side, and under his belly, 
without frightening him in the least. To the above 
relation I was an eye-witness, since I was present 
from the beginning to the end, without any inter- 
ruption to all the simple and progressive operations 
used in breaking this fiery, wild and hitherto un- 
tameable animal : being astonished above all to see, 
that in them this dexterous manager made no use of 
spurs, whip, clamor or exclamation ; but, on the con- 
trary, gentleness and caresses were the only means 
he put in practice to bring, as it were by enchant- 
ment to obedience, this wild animal, whose tracta- 
bility, even at this time, is doubtless much greater 
than that wiiich is observed in horses of a gentle 
nature, tamed at the end of a year or more, with 



30 TAMING HORSES. 

much coat, labor and danger, often losing a great 
part of their natural spirit by the hard usage they 
undergo whilst one is breaking them — and more 
especially those of a noble and spirited nature. 
As a proof of my being present to all herein rela- 
ted, and wishing to encourage such an extraordi- 
nary discovery, I sign this declaration, which I 
make in Guanajuato, capital city of the state 
of the same name, &c, &c, August 30th, 1825. 
The Marquis of San Juan de Kayas. 



TAMING HORSES. 31 



OBSERVATIONS UPON HORSES IN GENERAL? 
AND WHAT LED ME TO THE DIS- 
COVERY OF BREAKING THEM 
IN A SHORT TIME. 

The first experiments I made upon wild horses, 
in order to break them in a shorter time than that 
usually employed to that end, consisted in the ap- 
plication of different kinds of smells, such as opium, 
the oil of cummin, assafoetida, that callous sub- 
stance called the spur which grows upon the in- 
side of a horse's fore-legs, the sweat from a man's 
arm-pit, mare's milk, &c, &c. Opium has but 
little effect upon a horse, even if he smells it a 
considerable time. But of all these substances, no 
one tends so much to intoxicate, and even sicken, 
not only a horse but a man, as that taken from the 
horse when smelled of for any length of time. 
Any one who may doubt the veracity of what I 
here assert, can be easily convinced by experience, 
if he will. In the next place, the sweat from the 
arm-pit has a tendency to render a horse sleepy, 



82 TAMING HOKSES. 

if smelled for an hour or two. Some horses, thus 
rendered sleepy, can be handled ; but on most 
horses it has no effect, or very little. Now, as I 
was determined to publish this secret some day or 
other, in its true light, I never revealed any other 
till now, but that accompanied with some one of 
these substances, with certain directions how to ap- 
ply them. These directions contained enough of 
the true secret to tame a horse, so as to astonish 
the most penetrating. Now and then, a horse 
would remain gentle that had been thus tamed ; 
but five out of ten would become wild again. 
Whenever I broke one myself, he always remained 
gentle. Drinnen sincerely thought that some of 
these substances were necessary to gentle a horse. 
I solemnly declare, before God and man, that I do 
not believe that a horse can be tamed, even for a 
short time, by the application of any of these sub- 
stances, without applying to him more or less of 
the true secret ; and furthermore : I declare, that 
all and every one of them are entirely useless, and 
of no effect. God is my witness, that if ever this 
secret was known before, I never learnt it from any 
man; I discovered it myself, and brought it, as I 
believe, to its greatest perfection. 

A horse is gentled, by my secret, in from two to 
sixteen hours. The time I have most commonly 
employed, has been from four to six. After my 




HALTER AND BRIDLE FOR COLTS. 



TAMING HORSES. 33 

first experiments, I reflected upon the nature of 
horses in general, many of which, when confined, 
appeared to fear nothing: notwithstanding this, 
the result of my reflections was, that fear, much 
more than any thing else, was the cause of their 
resistance; of the resistance even of the fiercest; 
for, although these latter would run at a man, 
as well as at any other thing, when confined, 
yet, if they were let loose, and turned out into a 
field, they would leave him and scamper away. 
Being once convinced that fear was the only cause 
of the obstinacy seen in horses taken to be gentled 
by force, it now remained to discover by what 
means that fear might be taken away. To take 
away fear, is, to inspire confidence ; or, inspiring 
confidence, is taking away fear. I believe there is 
no person, who does not experience a more agree- 
able sensation, when another person combs his hair, 
than when he combs it himself. To be vulgar, 
who is there, that has not found a pleasure in hav- 
ing another rub his legs or arms, hands or feet, if 
he felt a pain in them, much more than if he 
rubbed them himself. We all know what pleasure 
it gives a parrot to have one scratch or rub him 
upon the head. Now, of the five senses, the sense 
of feeling possesses something more, as to its influence 
of materiality, than the other four. It has a simi- 
lar effect upon animals as upon men. Whereas, the 



34 TAMING HORSES. 

sense of hearing, and that of seeing, have, in 
many respects, a very different influence upon the 
human species to what they have upon animals. 
Animals, in general, are almost or quite insensible 
to that pleasure, which the human species enjoy, 
in contemplating beautiful or magnificent objects, 
though they frequently express great fear at others. 
They experience the same sensation of fear at sud- 
den or disagreeable sounds, whilst they appear al- 
most insensible to soft and melodious ones. The 
sense of feeling, in horses, seems to be as exquisite 
as in men; and in some cases, more so. A horse 
feels a lively pain at the stroke of a whip, or the 
prick of a pin. He feels a pleasure in being curried, 
rubbed and handled. It is w T ell known, that an ob- 
ject that frightens a horse, at first sight, will become 
familiar to him in a short time — even in a few min- 
utes. The same may be said of those sounds 
which frighten him at first : such as the explosion 
of a gun or cannon ; to all of which he soon be- 
comes familiar, provided they are not accompanied 
with any thing that operates upon the sense of feel- 
ing; but he will never become familiar to the 
crack of a whip, so as not to be afraid of it, if he 
has been accustomed to experience its effects, when 
vigorously applied to his back. To conclude: 
Take away Fear — Inspire Confidence — Fami- 
liarize. 



TAMING HORSES. 35 



THE SECEET. 

"a gentle hand may lead the elephant by 

A HAIR." 

Cause your horse to be put into a small yard, 
stable or room. If in a stable or room, it ought 
to be a large one, in order to give him more exer- 
cise with the halter, before you lead him out. If 
the horse belongs to that class which appears only 
to fear man, you must introduce yourself gently 
into the stable, room or yard where the horse is. 
He will naturally run from you, and frequently 
turn his head from you; but you must w T alk 
about extremely slow and softly, so that he can 
see you, and whenever he turns his head towards 
you, which he never fails to do in a short time, say 
in a quarter of an hour, or half an hour — I never 
knew one to be much longer without turning to- 
wards me — at the very moment he turns his head, 
hold out your left hand towards him, and stand 
perfectly still, keeping your eyes upon the horse, 
and watching his motions, if he makes any. If 
the horse does not stir for ten or fifteen minutes, 



36 TAMING HORSES. 

advance as slowly as possible, and without making 
the least noise, always holding out your left hand, 
without any other ingredient in it than what na- 
ture put in it. The reason of my having made 
use of certain ingredients before people — such as 
the sw T eat from under a man's arm, &c. — was, to 
disguise the real secret ; and Drinnen, as well as 
several others, believed that the docility to which 
the horse arrived, in so short a time, was owing to 
those ingredients. It will be seen, in this expla- 
nation of the secret, that they were of no use, 
whatever; but, by placing so much confidence in 
them, those who had succeeded in breaking one 
horse, failed in another, and that is what I foresaw. 
No one can accuse me of bad faith, to whom I 
discovered this or any part of the secret; for I al- 
ways intended to publish the whole. In the second 
place, many revealed what I had told them, after 
the most solemn promise to the contrary. - Caution 
is the parent of safety : I, therefore, by multiply- 
ing the ingredients, caused a -confusion amongst 
those w T ho thought they knew the real secret. 
Though I revealed enough of the secret for a man 
to break a horse in a few hours, it was not enough 
to make the horse remain gentle ; that is, generally 
speaking : for some horses would be perfectly gen- 
tle ever after; but the greater number w 7 ould not. 
The implicit faith placed in these ingredients, 



I 



TAMING HORSES. 37 

though innocent of themselves, became faith with- 
out works ; and thus men remained always in 
doubt concerning this important secret. The se- 
cret is a complete lesson of morality; for all is 

GENTLENESS PATIENCE PERSEVERANCE. 

But, I return to the explanation of the secret. 
If the horse makes the least motion when you ad- 
vance towards him, stop and stand perfectly still 
till he is quiet. Remain a few minutes in this po- 
sition, and then advance again in the same slow, 
almost imperceptible manner. Take notice: If the 
horse stirs, stop without changing your position. It 
is very uncommon for a horse to stir more than once, 
after you begin to advance, yet there are excep- 
tions. He generally keeps his eye steadfast on 
you, till you get nigh enough to touch him upon 
the forehead. When you are thus near to him, 
raise slowly, and by degrees, your hand, and let it 
come in contact with that part just above the nos- 
trils, as lightly as possible. If the horse flinches, 
(as many will,) repeat with great rapidity those 
light taps or strokes upon the forehead, going a 
little further up towards his ears by degrees, and 
descending with the same rapidity, till he will let 
you handle his forehead all over. Now let the 
strokes be repeated with more force over all his 
forehead, descending by lighter touches to each 
side of his head, till you can handle that part 
4 



38 TAMING HORSES. 

with equal facility. Then touch, in the same light 
manner, making your hands and' fingers play 
around the bottom or lower part of the horse's ears, 
coming down, now and then, to his forehead, which 
may be looked upon as the helm that governs all 
the rest. Having succeeded in handling his ears, 
advance towards the neck with the same precau- 
tions, and in the same manner ; observing always 
to augment the force of the strokes, whenever the 
horse will permit it. Perform the same on both 
sides of the neck, till he lets you take it in your 
arms without flinching. Proceed in the same pro- 
gressive manner to the sides, and then to the back 
of the horse. Every time the horse shows any un- 
easiness, return immediately to the forehead, as the 
true standard, patting him with your hands, and 
from thence rapidly to where you had already ar- 
rived; always gaining ground, a considerable dis- 
tance further on, every time this happens. The 
head, ears, neck and body being thus gentled, pro- 
ceed from the back to the root of the tail. This 
must be managed with dexterity, as a horse is never 
to be depended upon that is skittish about the tail. 
Let your hand fall lightly and rapidly on that 
part next to the body a minute or two, and then 
you will begin to give it a slight pull upwards 
every quarter of a minute. At the same time, you 
continue this handling of him, augmenting the 



TAMING HORSES. 39 

force of the strokes, as well as the raising of the 
tail, till you can raise it and handle it with the 
greatest ease, which commonly happens in a quar- 
ter of an hour in most horses ; in others almost im- 
mediately, and in some much longer. It now re- 
mains to handle all his legs. From the tail come 
back again to the head; handle it well, as likewise 
the ears, neck, breast, &c, speaking now and then 
to the horse. Begin, by degrees, to descend to the 
legs, always ascending and descending, gaining 
ground every time you descend, till you get to his 
feet. Talk to the horse in Latin, Greek, French, 
English or Spanish, or in any other language you 
please, but let him hear the sound of your voice, 
which at the beginning of the operation is not quite 
so necessary, but which I have always done in ma- 
king him lift up his feet: — " Hold up your foot," 
" Leve le pied " — " Alza el pie "'■ — " Aron ton poda," 
&c, at the same time lift his foot with your hand. 
He soon becomes familiar with the sounds, and 
will hold up his foot at command. Then proceed 
to the hind feet, and go on in the same manner ; 
and, in a short time, the horse will let you lift 
them, and even take them up in your arms. All 
this operation is no magnetism, no galvanism. It 
is merely taking away the fear a horse generally 
has of a man, and familiarizing him with him, as 
the horse experiences a certain pleasure from this 



40 TAMING HORSES. 

handling of him. As a striking proof of this as- 
sertion, I will relate what I performed in the state 
of Neuvo Leon, upon a wild boar, taken two days 
before in the woods, without being wounded. He 
was shut up in a pen, or kind of cage, and was so 
furious that he had eaten nothing for thirty hours. 
When I came to the cage, which was standing in 
a back yard, he gnashed his teeth, and became en- 
raged, and foamed in a terrible manner. I stood 
still before him for more than three quarters of an 
hour. I held a staff in my hand, around the end 
of which I wrapped a cloth pretty tight, and ad- 
vanced it, by little and little, towards the head of 
the boar. He at first tried to catch it in his mouth ; 
but, by continually repeating the trial, I succeeded 
in touching the bristles of his head. He made 
some resistance ; but, after I had slightly touched 
his head a dozen times, he stood still, I contin- 
ued this operation around his head, and then upon 
his sides, for half an hour, and also upon his belly 
and back. At the end of an hour, he appeared 
half asleep, and I passed the staff over him with 
great facility, till at last, seeing him so easy, I ven- 
tured to pass my hand through the grates, and 
touch him with it; which, so far from irritating 
him, he seemed to take an uncommon pleasure in 
being rubbed and scratched. Here, it must be 
observed, that, instead of giving light strokes or 



TAMING HORSES. 41 

taps with the hand upon this animal, as I do with 
a horse, I rather scratched and rubbed him ; and, 
in this manner I continued, till I handled him 
with as much ease as I conld a dog, and even took 
hold of his tusks. I left him for half an hour, and 
when I came back, he was eating corn, for the first 
time since he had been caught. He appeared to 
have been about two years old. In the afternoon, 
I handled him again, for some time ; and, finding 
him so extremely gentle, I ventured to take him 
out of the cage into the yard, though with the pre- 
caution of tying a rope about his neck, in case of 
his becoming refractory. Before I took him out, 
however, I made my servant and two or three In- 
dian boys handle him. This last precaution was 
useless, as he followed me into the house, and ate 
corn out of my hand. I caused him to be handled 
and fed that evening and the next morning, when 
he was finally turned loose among the pigs. This 
was in the year 1825. I came away the next day, 
and heard no more of him, and have never had a 
second trial upon that kind of animals. 

To return, again, to the horse, which we left al- 
ready familiarized to man. Supposing him, as I 
said in the beginning, to belong to that class which 
only fears man, or has little fear of any thing else : 
the horse is gentle, in doing which you may have 

employed two or three hours ; but he has no 

4* 



42 TAMING HORSES. 

knowledge of being led by the halter. Put the 
halter on him, and handle him in the forehead, 
and pull him gently round towards the left, form- 
ing a circle. Let him follow you several times 
round in this way, till he will go as fast as you 
wish him to go. Then change the position, and 
turn to the right in the same manner, talking to 
him, telling him to come along, &c. When he is 
familiar with forming a circle, make him leave it; 
and, by degrees, he will follow you in a straight 
direction. In all this operation stop him every 
now and then, and handle his head and all his 
body, &c. When he is following you, stop him 
short, always speaking to him, as likewise when 
you start him : " Come on " — " follow me " — "come 
along." In a short time, he will follow you with- 
out your pulling him by the halter. The first im- 
pression is so great upon horses, that a horse broken 
in this manner will always follow well ever after. 
Now take a whip, crack it at him, and drive him 
from you, but without whipping him. Then go up 
to him, and handle him and caress him, taking his 
head in your arms, putting your arms around his 
neck, &c. Finally : Take away the fear he had 
of you at first. The next operation is to saddle 
him, which is done almost immediately, if he be- 
longs to the second class of horses, which fear very 
little else than man : and as he will make no resis- 



TAMING HOKSES. 43 

tance at being saddled, he will make none at being 
ridden, and so your horse is broken. 

I shall now explain the difference to be observed 
in gentling the third class ; that is : those horses 
which appear to fear every thing. The operation 
is to be carried on, as above directed, till you come 
to that part where you are to saddle him. If you 
should undertake to put the saddle on a horse of 
this latter description, he would fly from you as 
quickly as a deer, although you might handle him 
with the greatest ease. How shall we then pro- 
ceed ? Take away the fear he has of different ob- 
jects, by making him acquainted \ath them, and 
convincing him, as it were, by gentle means, that 
those objects he so much dreads will not hurt him. 
Familiarize him with them. In order to succeed 
in this, every thing must be done by gradation. 
Firstly : Take a handkerchief and move it gently 
before him ; at the same time, you handle his fore- 
head; make him smell it; toss it up a little in your 
hand before him, till he is not frightened at it. 
Then throw it upon his head, and over his ears : 
then, by degrees, upon his neck, and so continue 
on; for if you should throw it immediately from 
his head to his back, or on his sides, he would 
jump and kick with ail his might. Throw it upon 
his back, and upon his sides ; let it fall off on one 
side., and then on the other. Let it fall before him 



44 TAMING HORSES. 

and behind him, so that it will fall upon his heels. 
Make him walk with it upon his back. Let it fall 
whilst he is walking, till he gets completely fami- 
liar with it. After this, take some one or two 
yards of heavy stuff, such as cotton bagging or the 
like, throw it down at a distance two or three 
times ; then make him smell it. Throw it up be- 
fore him till he no longer flinches at it ; then over 
his head, always talking to him, from time to time, 
and handling him every now and then. Then 
throw it upon his back, whilst you hold it in your 
hand, till you see that you can throw it upon his 
back, and let it hang down upon each side, with- 
out frightening him. Let him walk round with it : 
then make him trot with it, till it falls off. Pick 
it up and throw it upon him as he stands, and let 
it fall off on both sides of him, under his belly. 
Let it fall off from behind, over his heels. Repeat 
this last operation a great many times, and lift up 
his tail and pull it smartly. Tie something light 
to it, that will hang down over his hams; but not 
so low as to touch the ground. Make him follow 
you, in this manner. Afterwards, tie a large piece 
of mat or something similar to it, so that it will 
touch and drag upon the ground. Touch him and 
handle him in the forehead, making him advance 
slowly at first, then faster, till you make him run 
with it, and go around in every direction, till he be- 



TAMING HORSES. 45 

comes perfectly familiar with the object tied to his 
tail. Drive the horse away from you. Then call 
him back again. Untie the mat from his tail, and 
tie it to his neck, letting it hang down on one side, 
and making him run in the same manner as before. 
Take it off. Take a rattling, dry deer skin or ox- 
hide, and throw it down at some distance before 
the horse. Raise it up and throw it down several 
times, till the horse pays no attention to it when it 
falls, or when you let it fall and rattle it. Let it 
fall close before him, and make him smell of it. 
^Then throw it upon his neck. Let him first walk 
and then run with it, till it falls off. Then con- 
tinue with it, as you did with the mat, till you tie 
it to his tail, and let him w^alk and run with it, 
without showing the least signs of fear, which he 
will do in a very few minutes. Next comes the 
girt. To familiarize him to it, you will take, 
firstly, a common rope, and throw it over his back, 
and make him walk with it. Stop him, and 
double the rope. Let the middle of it hang upon 
the right side, low enough for you to take it in 
your hand where it is doubled, and draw it to- 
wards you. Slip the two ends of the rope through 
the doubled part, and haul it gently and by de- 
grees, as if you were girting the horse. Loosen 
and tighten it many times ; at last, fasten it, not 
very tight. Make him walk and run in this man- 



46 TAMING HORSES. 

ner. Loosen and tighten it again, till you have 
him girted up with the rope in this manner. 
Walk and run him in this way. Stop him. 
Throw another rope around his body, just before 
his hind legs, so as to encompass his flanks. At 
first, let it rub him gently, and by drawing first 
one end and then the other. This is very impor- 
tant, especially if the horse be naturally of a fear- 
ful, timid nature. The effect it has upon him, 
ever after, is truly astonishing. I speak after 
more than twenty years' experience, having done 
every thing as above directed. Take a heavy 
Spanish saddle, with wooden stirrups, if you have 
such a one. Throw it down before him, rattle it 
well, and make him smell of it. It must be ob- 
served, that in all these manoeuvres., you must now 
and then handle the horse, by taking up his feet, 
speaking to him, patting him all over on both 
sides pretty vigorously; going away from him, 
then running suddenly up to him, &c. 

To return to the saddle. Throw it up towards 
his back ; and if he makes no resistance, as it is 
probable he will not, throw it upon his back and 
girt it lightly. Handle him in every part. Strike 
first lightly, then very hard upon the saddle : walk 
him and run him with it. Stop him, and girt up 
tight. Pull upon the stirrups, on both sides. 
Make a noise upon the saddle, by striking it hard 



TAMING HORSES. . 47 

with your hand. Handle his tail, by raising it 
and letting it fall, and striking upon it ; then put 
a small cord under it, in form of a crupper, and 
tie the ends to the hinder part of the saddle. 
Walk and run him, &c. Pull the cord that serves 
as a crupper, till he gets familiar with it. Unsad- 
dle: saddle up again immediately. Put on the 
crupper : girt up tight. Exercise the horse, by 
leading him, and making him run. Stop him all 
at once. Put your hand on his forehead. Say to 
him, "Come along:" at the same time advance, 
and pull him gently by the rope. In a short time, 
you may let the rope fall, and he will stop at the 
word "Stop," and will follow you, at the words, 
u Come along," without your pulling him by the 
rope. Xow ungirt the saddle, and let it fall down 
upon the left side. Put it loose upon the horse 
again, and let it fall several times upon the right 
side and over his heels. Then take it and throw 
it over his head, upon his back; saddle him 
roughly, striking and making a noise upon the 
saddle. Pull the stirrups strongly, and lead him 
about. Load him with any baggage that comes 
in your way, and make him walk and run with it. 
Mount half way upon him, bearing hard with your 
left foot upon the stirrup: then upon the other 
side. If the horse shows no signs of fear at any of 
these operations, yon may get upon him with all 



48 TAMING HORSES. 

safety, and ride him through the most populous 
city in America, without his being frightened at 
any of the objects he meets in it. But I generally 
make it a rule, to accustom the horse to sound, be- 
fore I take him out: in order to do which, I take 
something that is similar to a drum, or an empty 
barrel, and beat upon it till he becomes perfectly 
indifferent to it. Then I show him a pistol or a 
gun, and flash it before him. Then I load it very 
lightly, and fire it off before him, close to his head, 
making him smell it before I fire. I flash it off 
two or three times before-hand. I load it again, 
and by repeating this exercise two or three times, 
you may fire off the gun while placed upon his 
neck, without frightening him in the least. 

I have already observed, that the first impres- 
sions are the strongest and most lasting. It is a 
great deal easier to learn, than to unlearn. There- 
fore, it is extremely necessary, that the horse 
should be exercised in every thing that tends to 
render him docile and useful, when you thus break 
him, and you will have very little to fear from him 
afterwards. After you have thus gentled your 
horse, so as to be able to ride him, it will be neces- 
sary for you to come up to him with one' or two 
other persons: let them touch him, and let him 
smell at them: otherwise, he would be afraid of 
other people : but, by coming up to him with other 



TAMIXG HORSES. 49 

persons, he will let any one handle him and man- 
age him, as easily as the one who broke him. The 
greater part of wild horses thus gentled, will go off 
with facility : others will be a little awkward at 
first. It is, perhaps, the best way, (though I have 
generally ridden them out alone,) and especially 
if they show any awkwardness in going at first, to 
ride them out in company with another horse. It 
will do no hurt to any. Horses broken in this way, 
become almost immediately bridle-wise, and need 
but very little exercise, to obey the bridle with 
uncommon facility. The reason is plain : they are 
no longer afraid, and consequently have no incli- 
nation to resist. 

Having thus shown how one must proceed, to 
break the second and third class of horses, I now 
retrocede to the first class, which appear to fear 
nothing. When this first kind of horses are let 
loose, after having been dragged by force into a 
pen or stable, it is very dangerous for any one to 
go in where they are ; for, if you step back or try 
to get out of their way, when they run at you, they 
will be sure to bite, kick or stamp you under their 
feet. But if you stop, stand perfectly still, hold 
out your left hand, and look at the horse, he will 
stand still, likewise, before he arrives at where you 
are. This may appear very strange ; but so it is, 
and I have experienced it very often. He will 
5 D 



50 TAMING HORSES. 

never come nigher than about five or six feet to 
you ; and if he is in a yard, he will rarely come 
nigher than ten or twelve. Such a horse should 
never be put into too small a place. Here we 
must make use of a precaution, which is not neces- 
sary in the two other kinds of horses : and give me 
leave to say, that I am fully persuaded, that no 
horse of this description was ever gentled in a few 
hours by any one but myself, and by the secret which 
I had discovered. The precaution I speak of, is : to 
let no one come into the stable or yard with you, 
for it would be dangerous. His attention must be 
fixed upon you, and your hand alone. I once 
came near being killed, by a horse of this descrip- 
tion, before I had discovered this part of the secret. 
Therefore, it is of the greatest importance, to put 
the horse wliere he can see no moving object, at 
the time you approach him. The case I men- 
tioned was this: I was about to draw nigh the 
horse, after having entered the stable where he 
was, and after he had stood still some time, when, 
on a sudden, a hen flew down from a scaffold ex- 
actly over the stable where the horse stood, and 
where I was to perform the operation. The horse 
gave a jump at me, and struck his foot so nigh me, 
that he grazed my shoulder ; then turned round 
almost as quick as lightning, and let fly a pair 
of heels, which knocked off my hat, but knocked a 



TAMING HORSES. 51 

useful lesson into my head. From that day for- 
ward, I have never received the slightest hurt, or 
even run any risk, in breaking some of the fiercest 
and most ferocious horses of New Spain. But to 
come to the point. Hold out your left hand, keep- 
ing it high enough to touch him upon the forehead : 
keep this position for at least one whole hour, 
lowering your hand now and then, unless the horse 
should advance, after ten or fifteen minutes, a step 
or two towards you ; in which case, let your hand 
be ready to meet his forehead, rather higher up 
than in the other two kinds of horses ; and, if he 
should appear uneasy, repeat the strokes very fast 
between his eyes, fetching your hand partly over 
them now and then. Your position, at first, ought 
to be exactly before him. Then, by degrees, fall 
off towards the left side. Never flinch, or show 
any signs of fear, when you are gentling this kind 
of horses. You must remain a great deal longer 
about their heads, than in others. They will often 
flinch, and frequently show signs of resistance, 
whenever you advance an inch from the place you 
have already handled; so that it requires some 
judgment, and more patience, to know how to 
manage them. But, by going on, after you have 
once touched them, as you would do with the other 
two classes, though a great deal slower, you will 
never fail of making them as gentle as a lamb. I 



52 TAMING HORSES. 

never employed more than ten hours but with one, 
which belonged to the Governor of San Louis Po- 
tosi, Don Jose Ildefonso Leon. This animal kept 
me between fifteen and sixteen hours, in gentling 
him ; at the end of which time, men, women and 
children could ride him and handle him with as 
much ease as they could any old, gentle cart-horse, 
and ride hi^i bare-backed through the streets of 
the city, as many did — five or six being mounted 
upon him at once. For he was a stud of ten years 
of age, of great strength, of the Arabian race, and 
very high spirited ; and the governor himself, who 
possessed several thousands of wild horses- — and 
was the best horseman and herdsman in America, 
always had thought, for the last four years, that it 
was not in the art of man to break him. He was 
offered a thousand dollars for him the same day I 
finished breaking him, by an English gentleman, 
by the name of Humstead, who was travelling 
through the country : a great price, in a country 
where you can get a good horse for thirty or forty 
dollars. I would always advise a man, that goes 
to break a horse, to have a watch with him ; for 
the time will always appear long to him, when he 
undertakes a horse of this description. It is very 
uncommon to meet with a horse you cannot come 
up to, so as to touch him in the forehead with your 
left hand, in less than a half a quarter of an hour. 



TAMING HOESES. 53 

Now, any person who may in the least doubt of his 
own capacity to perform the operation, according 
to the rules laid down here, can always have a 
halter, or what the Spaniards call a jaguima, 
(which is generally used in riding young horses, 
before the bridle is put on them,) put upon the 
wild horse, before he is let loose, with a long rope 
tied to it, dragging upon the ground. When he 
goes in to the horse thus haltered, he will take care 
to take the rope up gently in one hand, whilst he 
holds out the other ; taking care that the rope may 
keep clear of all his feet, and lie before him, 
gathering it up as he approaches. Another pre- 
caution may likewise be used, by persons naturally 
afraid of horses, which is : to have a barrier placed 
between them and the horse, and the end of the 
rope on the side they stand, which they may take 
hold of, and proceed as above directed. The bar- 
rier, if made use of, must be open enough for the 
horse to have a full view of the person who is 
going to break him. It is always a considerable 
inconvenience; but, it has this advantage : it places 
the most timid out of the reach of all the harm he 
might fear from horses of this description, till he 
can handle their head, which is already a great 
point ; but, as one can handle but a small part of 
the horse, in this manner, it is necessary to go in 

to him afterwards, when he is thus a little famili- 
5* 



54 TAMING HORSES. 

arized to you ; for there is no danger, after you 
once handle his head, if you proceed according to 
the above directions ; that is, always advancing by 
degrees. Whenever you can handle the horse in 
every part, you must handle him much more vig- 
orously than at first, though without hurting him. 
Those horses which appear to fear nothing, but 
kick at every thing with a kind of spite, and run 
at men when confined in a close place, are not al- 
ways the longest in becoming perfectly gentle. 
Though a man may sometimes be an hour before 
he can touch them, yet they frequently become 
reconciled to him, as soon as he can handle their 
head , and it is not unfrequent to see them very 
easy to be saddled and ridden, and more especially 
if they have never been handled; because a horse 
that has once been taken, in order to be broken 
the common way, and has resisted with success ; 
that is to say, has flung his rider and run away — 
or one that has been beaten, whipped, or badly 
used in any way, is a great deal worse than one 
that has never been touched ; for it is more diffi- 
cult to unlearn than to learn. It is necessary al- 
ways to bear in mind, what I have said concerning 
first impressions. 

To conclude : To which soever of the three classes 
horses belong, deal with them as with the third 
class; that is, those that fear every thing, with 



TAMING HORSES. 55 

this difference : the first class, or those that appear 
to fear nothing, must not be approached so sudden- 
ly as the others. Take notice: Whenever a horse 
that you begin to handle, hangs down his head, or 
appears sleepy and careless, (and this will happen 
in some in less than an hour,) your business is half 
over. I have broken an extremely wild horse, so 
as to saddle him, bridle him, and make him follow ' 
me without pulling him by the halter, and so that 
men, women and children have ridden him, with- 
out the least danger, in the streets of one of the 
most populous towns of the United Mexican 
states : and this I have dpne in less than two hours 
from the time I went into the place where the 
horse was. I always carried a watch with me, 
when I broke a horse. I have now and then 
gentled one, so as to ride him with perfect safety, 
in less than one hour. However, these are rare 
cases. I never had but two that kept me ten 
hours, and one nearly fifteen hours and a half. I 
began him at two o'clock, and worked upon him 
till seven ; and the next day I began at five, and 
finished him a little after one o'clock. This was 
the Governor of San Louis Potosi's, and one of the 
highest spirited horses I ever saw . I have gene- 
rally employed from four to six hours, and some 
times eight, in rendering a horse completely gentle 
and useful, and on which a man or woman might 



56 TAMING HORSES. 

undertake a journey of a thousand miles, the very- 
next day after being broken, without any kind of 
fear of his becoming refractory on the road. 

To come now to the most important part of the 
secret. I observed, in the beginning of my dis- 
course upon the experiments I had made, that I was 
surprised to find one of the horses I had gentled 
the day before, almost as wild as ever, and one of 
the others had remained perfectly gentle. I saw 
there was something lacking. I therefore broke 
another; and, after having finished, I tied him in 
a stable. I went to him at night, and made a 
little negro boy handle him a quarter of an hour : 
gave him half a spoonful of fine salt, .and not 
more than about half as much as he would eat. 
Early in the morning, I went to him again, 
handled him in the forehead and all over, and 
took up his feet, &c, &c, for a quarter of an hour : 
took him to water ; fetched him back ; gave him 
another spoonful of fine salt, and plenty to eat 
afterwards. I rode him a couple of miles, and 
then let him loose. The next day, I caught him 
in the yard, amongst the other horses, without 
throwing the rope, and he remained gentle ever 
after. The first day you break a horse, it is al- 
ways good to ride him two or three miles ; if fur- 
ther, it will do him no hurt. The first time you 
ride him out, it will be well enough to accompany 



TAMING HORSES. 57 

hirn with another horse, though this is not abso- 
lutely necessary ; for many horses, especially high 
spirited ones, will often go as well as if they had 
been gentled ior a long time; some others appear 
a little awkward at first, but in half an hour they 
will go well alone. At any rate, they will not be 
afraid of any object they meet. 

I have here given the whole secret of taming, 
in a few hours, the most refractory wild horse. 

Whilst residing in the city of Mexico, I wrote a 
grammar, in Greek, Latin, French and English, 
which I intend to publish, in order to simplify, in 
some measure, the study of the former. In it I be- 
gin by making the student acquainted with the 
most common names — such as fall under his im- 
mediate view. The names of birds, fish, plants, 
trees, the human body and its parts, &c, &c. In 
the declination of all these, will be found general 
rules; but all, or almost all of these rules, are sub- 
ject to some one or more exceptions — as is the case 
with all general rules. Thence, perhaps, came our 
proverb : There is no rule without exception. Now, 
as gentling a horse, and writing a grammar, are 
two very different occupations, yet they have some 
things which are common to both : one of which is, 
this same exception to the general rule. I have 
given a detail of the method I use in breaking the 
three different kinds of horses : that is, horses in 



58 TAMING HORSES. 

general ; these general rules, however, are liable to 
some few exceptions. I have had horses that did 
not appear to belong to any one of the three kinds 
mentioned. I look upon them as exceptions. 
Among these, are horses that toss up their heads 
the very minute you touch them, and will not let 
you put your hand upon them. The first of these 
I met with gave me so much trouble, that I thought 
it would be impossible to break him. I tried to 
touch him upon the forehead, as the true standard, 
but could not. I therefore declared him to be an 
anomaly, and determined to decline him in some 
other way. I therefore endeavored to touch him 
upon the neck, which I succeeded in doing in less 
than five minutes. I proceeded on in handling 
him, as I did other horses. After having lifted up 
his feet, and handled him every where except 
about his head, I succeeded in gentling that part. 
He always remained gentle, and not in the least 
skittish about that part. To succeed in handling 
his head, I was obliged to begin at that part of the 
neck nighest to the ears, and continue on to them, 
and then to the upper part of his forehead, between 
his eyes ; and so descend to his nose, in the same 
progressive manner as I ascend in other horses. I 
had tried every possible means to begin at that 
part, but found it utterly out of my power. 

Another exception to the general rule, are those 



TAMING HORSES. 59 

horses which, after having been begun, and already 
handled in the forehead, show an inclination to 
bite, as you proceed on, and would actually do so, 
without your taking some precaution. Now, as 
my general rule of gentling horses is all mildness, 
gentleness, &c, except from this rule horses of this 
latter description ; and, whenever they show an in- 
clination to bite, correct them by giving them a 
pretty smart slap with your hand, and they will 
never repeat it more than tw^o or three times. I 
never knew this to happen with horses of the first 
description, which one w T ould be naturally inclined 
to suppose more apt to do so than any others. As 
to the rest, proceed as in others. If you wish your 
horse to go in a cart, coach or plow, after having 
gentled him in this manner, harness him, put on 
lines, and at first make him go round before you 
several times : you will tie some light thing behind, 
for him to drag, and go on progressively, and in a 
very short time you may harness him to a cart, or 
plough, and he will go off without difficulty ; es- 
pecially if you do this immediately after having 
gentled him, for then is the best time to take away 
all caprices. It is well to give him a few days ex- 
ercise. 

Observation. If the horse you are going to 
break has received a blow upon his forehead, his 
ears, or about any part of his head, so that it is 



60 TAMING HORSES. 

sore or painful when touched, it is useless to un- 
dertake to break him before he gets well : for the 
very touch which would give him pleasure being 
well, gives him pain in this situation, and the more 
you try to handle him the more you will irritate 
him. Let him get well, before you undertake to 
gentle him. 



TAMING HORSES. 61 



REFRACTORY HORSES GENTLED FOR A 
LONG TIME IN THE COMMON WAY. 

I begin first with those which are afraid of a gun, 
or the like. Cause a pen to be made, j ust big enough 
to put the horses in, and in such a manner as 
to be able to go round it in every direction, as well 
behind as before ; and let the bars be far enough 
apart for you to handle him every where. Let 
him remain in his pen or cage from two o'clock in 
the afternoon till the next morning, without eating 
or drinking. The pen ought to be made so high, 
that the horse cannot reach his head over it, and 
with four strong posts in the ground, so that if he 
should fall back upon the bars, that traverse it be- 
hind, his weight will not be sufficient to break or 
derange them. Go to him in the morning. Han- 
dle him smartly a few minutes ; then stand at a 
distance before him, with your gun in your hand, 
without moving it, but so that he can see it. If he 
is frightened at it, keep your position for some 
time, till he remains quiet, then flash it off. Re- 
peat this, till he is in some measure reconciled to 
it. Draw nigher. Repeat the same: flash it off. 

. 6 



62 TAMING HORSES. 

before him, very nigh. Handle him in the fore- 
head, and hold the gun in one of your hands. Go 
on thus progressively, till you can load and fire it 
off over his head, with as heavy a charge as you 
wish to put in it, which you will be able to do in 
about two or three hours. When you have gone 
thus far, run suddenly up to him, with your gun 
in your hand. Hand! e him in the forehead, holding 
it still in your hand. Exercise him well in this way, 
till he does not flinch or show any signs of fear, when 
you thus approach him. Now, you suppose the 
work to be completed? If you do, you are very 
much mistaken ; for you must recollect, that he 
has much to unlearn. Take away Fear — Inspire 
Confidence — Familiarize — are three great lessons 
to be taught, in the art of gentling a wild horse; 
and, to bring a rebellious horse to obedience, you 
must add, Unlearn. Repeat the same, unlearn, 
&c, till he is completely gentle. 

Now give your horse a plenty to eat and drink. 
I suppose it to be about ten o'clock. Let him rest, 
if he will. Repeat your lessons at four o'clock in 
the afternoon, more or less rapidly, according as 
he is inclined to obey them. Feed him at night ; 
let him remain in the pen all night. Next day, 
go over the same exercise ; at the end of which, if 
you think him sufficiently docile, take him out of 
the pen, and go through the same exercise that 



TAMING HOUSES. 63 

you did whilst he was in the pen. If he shows no 
signs of fear at the explosion of the gun, when 
fired, off from his back or neck, you are sure of 
him. But you must exercise him a little, for two 
or three days more ; at the end of which, you may 
always rely on him afterwards. Should he be 
somewhat refractory, when you take him out of the 
pen, which would be a rare case, though some 
horses may be, put him again into it, and repeat, 
and you will never fail to succeed. In the same 
progressive manner, you can correct the defects of 
a skittish horse, in a great measure ; but some are 
of so fearful a nature that, if they have been 
gentled in the common way, it requires a great 
deal of patience to manage them. 



A SKITTISH HORSE. 

The best method of correcting a horse of this 
description, when one is on the road, is, to stop him 
suddenly, whenever he appears to be frightened at 
any thing he sees before him or at his side. Let 
him stand perfectly still : get down, if he does not 
become quiet in three or four minutes, and handle 
him in the forehead. Lead him by the bridle to 
the object that frightened him: then lead him back 
to where he was, and get on him. Ride him up to 



64 TAMING HORSES. 

it, &c. You can likewise give him the same exer- 
cise as you do to a wild horse of the third kind, 
and you will not fail to succeed in correcting him 
by repeating it several times. I never knew a 
horse to become skittish that I had gentled by my 
secret, though I am not certain that such a thing 
might not happen ; for, as I said before, there is no 
rule without an exception. 



A HORSE THAT WILL NOT SUFFER HIS 
EARS TO BE TOUCHED 

Begin at his forehead, just above the nose, and 
handle it in the same manner as you would do 
with a wild horse, according to the rules laid 
down in that part of the secret. Gentleness, Pa- 
tience, Perseverance, Faith ; all these are neces- 
sary, in order to succeed with some horses. It has 
taken me from five to six hours, to be able to 
handle the ears of some horses; but, at the end of 
that time, they let me handle them with as much 
ease as I could those of a house-dog. They will 
always let you handle them afterwards. 

Shortly after my arrival in Mexico, a gentleman 
who had read an article which the President had 
caused to be published in the government paper, 
concerning what I had done with a wild horse that 



TAMING HOUSES. 65 

I had gentled in his presence, a few days before, 
sent for rne, telling me he had a horse of great value, 
that he had given only five hundred dollars for, 
on account of a defect, or vice, that the horse had 
contracted two years before, and which had aug- 
mented to such a degree, that he would have killed 
any one that would have attempted to put a bri- 
dle on him, or touch him about the ears. He 
asked me if I thought I could cure him of this evil 
habit. I told him I would try ; and, accordingly, 
I sent every person away, and went in to the horse. 
I had taken the precaution of having a halter 
(jaguima) put upon him before-hand, and a long 
rope, dragging upon the ground, tied to it. In 
order to put this halter upon him, they had to 
throw a rope upon his legs, and tie them, and an- 
other around his nose ; and this was a ceremony 
they had to perform every time they put the bri- 
dle on him. When I had got in where the horse 
was, I took up the rope and advanced, holding out 
my left hand, as when I break a wild horse, and 
came up to him. I used a great deal of precaution, 
when I touched him in the forehead for the first 
time, as I do with a horse belonging to the first 
class, that is, those that seem to fear nothing ; and, 
continuing on in this manner, gradually ascending, 
making my fingers play upon his forehead with 
great rapidity — gaining ground so slow, that I re- 
6* E 



66 TAMING HORSES. 

mained two hours before I came to the roots of his 
ears, which I began to touch very lightly at the 
end of another half hour ; and, by continuing the 
operation an hour longer, I was able to handle 
them with ease and safety. A few minutes after, 
I bridled him, led him about, and made him fol- 
low me, without pulling him by the bridle. I 
took it off, and put it on again. I repeated this 
exercise several times. Then I called in my ser- 
vant, and made him bridle and unbridle him. 
Then sent him to tell the owner of the horse to 
come and see him. 

Give me leave here to observe, that when I per- 
formed upon a horse, I never let any one be present, 
(for fear they might discover the real secret,) ex- 
cept such a gentleman as I knew would give me a 
handsome gratification : for a man is always more 
or less willing to pay to satisfy his curiosity as 
well as his interest. 

The owner of the horse came in where he was 
standing without rope or bridle. I called a little 
Indian boy, who had never bridled a horse in his 
life, and gave him the bridle ; and, as the horse's 
head was too high for him to reach up to it, I told 
him to get into a chair, and put the bridle on. 
His master cried out, " For God's sake, don't let 
him go nigh him ! I cannot yet have confidence 
enough in that animal, to let the little boy go nigh 



TAMING HORSES. 67 

him : I know he would kill him, though Beelzebub 
himself had been to work at him since the time you 
first went into the stable ! " I then went and put 
on the bridle myself, and took it off; then he 
agreed to let the little Indian do the same, which 
he did, as may be supposed, in a very awkward, 
fumbling manner, standing all the while in a chair, 
to the great surprise of his master, who then came 
in and bridled him himself, and made me a pre- 
sent of eight doubloons, (a hundred and twenty- 
four dollars.) 



TO BREAK A HORSE OF KICKING. 

Handle the kicking horse in the forehead, and 
from thence every where, except his legs and feet. 
Then tie up one of his fore legs, (no matter which) ; 
handle him gently all over, and descend, by de- 
grees to his feet, always speaking to him: he will 
let you handle them in a few minutes. Untie his 
fore leg, and go through the same ceremony. 
After repeating this operation two or three times, 
he will let any one handle his feet with the great- 
est ease imaginable. 



68 TAMING HORSES. 



HOW TO MANAGE A HORSE THAT KICKS 

UP, SO AS TO BREAK HIM OF THAT 

VICIOUS HABIT. 

A horse that is apt to kick up, ought to be dealt 
with in the following manner: Put upon him a 
pack-saddle, if you have one; if not, something as 
nigh to it as possible. Take two bags, and put 
one hundred and twenty-five pounds of sand in 
each, if your horse is a common sized one Girt 
them on, or bind them very tight, in such a man- 
ner that no effort of the horse can throw them off. 
Have another horse prepared at hand, and some 
one mounted on him to take hold of the rope of 
the vicious horse, the moment he is loaded with 
the sand. Let him start off, with another horse- 
man behind with a good whip in his hand ; and 
the more he kicks up, let him whip him the more ; 
or, in other words, let him whip him every time he 
kicks up. Let him trot off thus, about ten or 
fifteen miles ; at the end of which, take off his load, 
and let some one get immediately upon him, and 
trot back with the ^ame speed. After having ex- 
ercised him thus, for two or three times, it is not 



TAMING HORSES. 69 

common that a horse will ever kick up again. 

It is to be observed, that if the horse should 
kick up with the load of sand at the end of ten 
miles or more, make him go at least three miles 
after he has ceased kicking up ; but it is very un- 
common for a horse to kick up, after the first three 
or four miles. If he should appear a little tired, 
you can regulate the distance, more or less, and 
vice versa. I believe this to be the most infallible 
remedy known, without exposing one's self. There 
are other remedies, which none but a good horse- 
man can put in practice; but I write for every 
class of men that ride on horseback, whether doc- 
tors, lawyers or priests, farmers or merchants. If 
this advice should save a few necks from getting 
broken, I shall feel gratified. 



TO HANDLE A HORSE'S FEET THAT IS APT 
TO KICK 

Put him in a pen, and go on progressively, till 
you can handle all his feet as you would a dog's. 
It must be recollected, that when I speak of put- 
ting a horse in a pen, I suppose them to be of the 
most refractory kind imaginable; otherwise, I can 
handle a bad horse's feet, in a very few minutes, by 
beginning at his forehead, and so on. 



70 TAMING HORSES. 



TO TEACH A HORSE, SO THAT HE WILL NOT 
LET A PERSON DRESSED IN A CERTAIN 
MANNER COME NIGH HIM. 

If you would not wish to have a person, for ex- 
ample, wearing a white hat, come nigh your horse, 
put on a white hat, go into the stable where your 
horse is, and take a whip in your hand : go up to 
him, and give him a few good lashes with it. Re- 
tire and change your hat for one of another color : 
leave your whip, come in again without it ; stroke 
your horse, pat him, talk to him and feed him. 
Go out again, and put on your white hat : come in 
and whip him soundly. Then retire, put on ano- 
ther hat, and come in and handle him gently. 
Repeat the same for a few days, and your horse 
would as lief see the devil as a man with a white 
hat, and will not let such a one come near him; 
and thus it will happen with any other clothing. 

I will relate a little anecdote, which took place 
in Mexico, a few years before I left there. One 
of my friends had a horse extremely gentle, and 
of such an easy, agreeable gait, that he took the 
greatest care of him, and held him at a great price. 



TAMING HORSES. 71 

A well-fed, big and lusty friar was a friend to our 
neighbor : one who liked the good things of this 
world, as well as he liked to ride out to the small 
towns, bordering upon the city of Mexico, and take 
a dinner with the bonny lasses and countrymen, 
inhabiting those villages. He used to ask my 
friend to loan him his horse, to take these ex- 
cursions just around the capital; and, as his re- 
quests were granted with so good a grace, he in a 
short time went so far as to ask the loan of this fa- 
vorite animal, to go to Cuernavaca, a distance of 
eighteen leagues, or fifty miles. As this happened 
pretty often, our friend complained to me one day, 
at the indiscretion of the friar. I asked him if he 
could procure me a friar's dress, for a few days, 
and leave his horse with me, for the same time. 
He did so. I dressed myself in the friar's dress, 
and went in where the horse was. I took a good 
whip in my hand, and made him do penance for no 
other sin bat that of too much gentleness. In going 
out I took off the friar's dress, and went in again 
in my own dress, and handled him gently. I re- 
peated the operation a few days, at the end of 
which, I took the horse back to his master, and 
told him he might lend him to the friar whenever 
he pleased. A day or two after, he came to my 
store. Your remedy, said he, has had a marvellous 
effect. Our monk has just left my house, perfectly 



72 TAMING HORSES. 

persuaded that my horse is possessed with the 
devil. For, when the holy personage came up to 
take him by the bridle to get on him, he was so 
frightened, and wheeled round so quick, and flew 
away from him with so much terror, that one 
would have said he took him for the destroying 
angel. The friar crossed himself many times, hur- 
ried away with all haste to his convent, to sprinkle 
himself abundantly with holy water, and never 
asked my friend for his horse again. 



TO TEACH YOUR HORSE, SO THAT HE WILL. 

LET NO ONE BUT YOURSELF COME NEAR 

HIM. 

Whilst your horse is eating, let another person 
come in to him with a stick sharpened at the end. 
Let him prick his nose with it, to irritate him; 
but slightly, drawing back at the same time. Let 
him repeat the same an instant afterwards, and 
every time the horse begins to eat again. Come to 
him yourself, and caress him and talk to him. Go 
out again, and cause another person to come in 
with the sharpened stick; but not the same one 
that came in at first. Let him fret him in the 
same manner as the other did. Call him out and 
go in yourself; handle the horse gently, and talk 



TAMING HORSES. 73 

to him. Call in a third, and a fourth, and perform 
the same ; always retiring suddenly from the horse, 
as if they were afraid of him, every time he leers 
at them, or endeavors to bite them. These lessons, 
repeated a few days, will inspire your horse with 
so much mistrust against every person but your- 
self, and a certain confidence in his own strength, 
that he will not suffer any one but yourself to 
come near him. 



TO PREVENT A HORSE FROM PULLING UPON 

HIS BRIDLE-REINS, IN ORDER TO BREAK 

THEM. 

Put a halter, (of that kind which Spaniards call 
a jaquima, used to ride young horses: it goes over 
their ears, comes down and crosses their nose, and 
has a throat-latch to it,) upon your horse, so strong 
that it cannot be easily broken, and tie it to a tree 
so small that it will bend a little, if the horse pulls 
with all his strength. Scare him. Run up before 
him. Give him even a light stroke or two with 
the whip : speaking to him to be quiet, whenever 
he pulls upon the rope. In a short time, he will 
see that it is imposssible for him to break it ; and, 
by exercising him twice a day for half an hour, 

each day in about a week, he will no longer pull 

7 



74 TAMING HORSES. 

upon the halter, when you scare him, and conse- 
quently will stand still afterwards, when hitched 
by the bridle. 



THE MEXICAN MODE OF PREVENTING A 
HORSE FROM BREAKING HIS BRIDLE. 

The Mexicans, when they ride out, always carry 
a beautiful hair rope, hanging from their horse's 
neck. Whenever they stop, they hitch or tie their 
horses by this rope ; and this simple method keeps 
them from breaking their bridle-reins. I would 
advise every one to do the same ; especially if he 
stops long, is on a journey, or rides a stud. Mer- 
chants and saddlers may, perhaps, not like this 
advice, but I write for all. They likewise sell 
ropes. 



HOW TO MANAGE A HORSE THAT GETS 

THE STUDS, OR ONE THAT STOPS AND 

WILL NOT ADVANCE A STEP WHEN 

YOU PUT HIM TO A PLOUGH, &c. 

When your horse is harnessed, and put before 
the plough, and you find it impossible to drive him 
forward, either by gentle or rough means, drive 



TAMING HORSES. 75 

down a strong stake or post, at the very place 
where he stops. Let it be so strong that he can- 
not break it by pulling. Then put a rope upon 
him equally strong ; tie him rather short. Take 
out your watch, if you have one ; if not, look at 
the sun. Let him remain in this position for 
twelve hours, without eating or drinking. If the 
days are short, I would advise you to tie him a 
little before sun-set, and let him remain all night. 
Go to him, untie him, and then speak to him to go 
on. He will undoubtedly advance. Make him 
plough two or three rounds ; then unharness him, 
and give him something to eat, after having wa- 
tered him, and put him again in the plough, should 
he stop again, do with him as at first, and let him 
stand nine or ten hours. It is rare that you have 
to repeat the operation: almost all horses go after 
the first time they have been thus managed. 



HOW TO TEACH A HORSE TO LIE DOWN 
AT THE WORD OF COMMAND. 

Tie up the horse's right foot with a handkerchief, 
or a buckled strap, or something that is not so 
hard, as a common rope. Hold him close by the 
bridle-reins. Then take a small stick in your 
right hand, and strike gently upon the horse's left 



76 TAMING HORSES. 

leg, pulling downwards at the same time upon the 
bridle-reins, which you hold in your left hand, 
speaking to the horse, and telling him to lie down. 
Every time you strike his left leg, bear a little 
against him, and pull upon the bridle, saying to 
him, "Lie down, sir!" The horse, after several 
repetitions of the strokes, tries to lift up his left 
leg ; but, as the other is tied up, this motion natu- 
rally throws him upon his knees. Now push him 
gently, till he lies upon his side. After he has re- 
mained several minutes in this position, untie his 
left leg, and say, " Stand up ! " After he gets up, 
pat him in the forehead and all over, and lead 
him about a little. By repeating these lessons a 
few times, the horse will lie down at the word of 
command, by your pulling a little upon the bridle- 
reins, and leaning against him. When I practice 
this upon a wild horse that I have just been break- 
ing, it is surprising to see how quick he will learn 
to lie down. He will do it in less than one half 
the time which one that has been broken in the 
common way will be, in doing the same, and very 
often in one fourth. 



TAMING HORSES. 77 



HOW TO TEACH A HORSE TO COUNT ANY 
NUMBER. 

Take the horse's left foot in your right hand ; 
lift it up, and strike it upon the ground, counting 
one, at the same time. Strike again, and count 
two, and again, and count three, &c. to ten : when 
you pronounce this last number, raise your voice, 
so that it will be a little more audible than it was 
in the other numbers, and let the horse's foot fall 
at the same time. Now count fifteen, or any other 
number, in the same manner ; always telling the 
horse to count ten, fifteen, &c, and pronouncing 
the number you tell in a more audible manner, 
letting his foot fall at the same time. In a few 
lessons, he will learn to count at the word of com- 
mand, and will stop at any number, whenever you 
raise your voice a little. In the same manner, you 
may make him tell what o'clock it is, &c. 



EASY MODE OF FATTENING A HORSE IN A 
SHORT TIME. 

The first day you take a lean horse, and wish to 
put him in a situation, as quick as possible, to be 
7* 



78 TAMING HORSES. 

able to perform a journey or any other fatigue : 
give him, in the morning, twelve ears of corn, 
soaked twenty four hours in clean water. Scatter 
half a spoonful of fine salt over it ; then let him 
eat hay or fodder for one hour. At noon, give him 
eight ears more, and a little fodder. Let him 
stand till five o'clock, if the weather is warm, and 
then bathe him : feed him as in the morning, and 
give him hay, grass or fodder, not quite so much 
as he would eat. The second day, bleed him by 
one or two slight incisions in the mouth, and give 
him sixteen ears of corn in the morning, and what 
grass or fodder he will eat in half an hour, and no 
more than four ears of corn at noon. Feed him in 
the evening as in the morning, after having bathed 
him as before, and augment the quantity of fodder. 
If the weather is cool, curry him and rub him well, 
instead of bathing. Third day, give him as much 
corn as he will eat, and fodder at discretion all 
night. Feed him as above, at seven or eight 
o'clock in the morning, and give him no hay or 
fodder, and nothing at noon: continue in this 
manner, observing to scatter a little salt upon his 
corn every third day. It will be necessary, after 
the third or fourth day, to ride him a mile or two 
twice a day. A horse managed in this manner, 
will be fatter at the end of ten or twelve days, than 
one fed in the common way will be in a month. 



TAMING HORSES. 79 

A horse upon a journey, from September till April, 
requires no feeding, from the time you start in the 
morning till you stop at night He will stand the 
journey better, and lose less flesh. I have travelled 
thousands of miles in the Mexican states, and have 
always found it to be the case, with the exception 
of those hot countries bordering on the Pacific 
Ocean, where I fed a little at noon — started a little 
early, and rode late, on account of the heat, which 
is equally great at all seasons of the year. A 
horse fed as I have directed for fifteen days, may 
then eat his corn without being soaked; and, 
though these directions are more particularly in- 
tended for this country, and for horses taken from 
the prairies, still, the directions will hold good in 
all countries and all climates : allowing something, 
however, for the different length of days in differ- 
ent seasons and climates. When on a journey, let 
a horse drink as often as he wishes. 



A REMEDY FOR A HORSE THAT WILL NOT 
FATTEN, THOUGH WELL FED. 

There are some horses that will not fatten, 
though you feed them with the greatest care ; and, 
at the same time, they are perfectly healthy in 
other respects. Give to such a horse a pint of 



80 TAMING HOESES. 

pretty strong decoction of the root of poke-weed. 
It generally causes him to sweat copiously, and it 
often happens, that one dose is sufficient to effect a 
radical cure ; but, it may be necessary to repeat the 
dose two or three times : after which, treat him as 
you would a horse taken out of the prairie to be 
fattened according to the method laid down in this 
work. 



TO PREVENT A HORSE'S BACK FROM GET- 
TING SORE, EVEN ON A LONG JOURNEY. 

The best method I ever found, to keep a horse's 
back from getting sore, on a long journey, is: in 
the first place, to procure a saddle, with a saddle- 
tree sufficiently open as not to come in contact with 
the spine. If it be a Spanish saddle, or one of the 
common saddles used in herding cattle in this 
country, add to it a couple of cushions filled with 
wool well picked and clean, considerably thicker 
at the upper part, where they come nighest to the 
spine, and thinner as they descend upon the ribs 
of the horse, Fine wool is far preferable to hair, 
or any other substance I ever made use of. Put 
under the saddle a small saddle-blanket, which 
should likewise be of wool. When you stop, even 
for a few minutes, unloose or slacken the girt , and 



TAMING HORSES. 81 

if you stop half an hour, take off your saddle : es- 
pecially if the weather be warm. When you stop 
at night, curry your horse well, and bathe his back 
in cold water, if the weather be warm. Give him 
as much corn and fodder as he will eat, but always 
give him the fodder an hour, or at least half an 
hour before you give him the corn. Arise early 
in the morning, and go yourself, or send a servant 
of confidenc, to see that your horse eats as much 
as he will before you start on your journey; for 
good feeding is likewise a pretty good remedy to 
prevent a horse's back from getting sore, because 
a horse in good order is less liable to be hurt than 
a lean one. Should your horse get foundered on 
the road, ride him or make him walk for at least 
two hours : after which bleed him copiously in the 
mouth, and continue your journey the next day, 
without fear of his failing ; for though he should 
still limp a little, he will be well by night. I had 
forgot to observe, that before you bleed him, you 
must rub all his legs well, and bathe them in cold 
water. In rubbing them, it must always be done 
by beginning at the upper part and rubbing 
downwards. 



82 TAMING HORSES. 



HOW TO TREAT A HORSE UPON A JOUR- 
NEY. 

From September to March, never feed your 
horse at noon. It is good to start early in the 
morning. When you stop to eat breakfast, un- 
loose your girt, and, if the weather be warm, take 
off the saddle. If you stop for dinner, do the same. 
Let your horse drink as often as he pleases ; but 
give him nothing to eat, till you stop at night, or, 
rather, a little before sun-set. When vou stop, it 
is good, if your horse is warm, to let him walk 
about a few minutes, before you take off the sad- 
dle. When he gets perfectly dry, have him cur- 
ried ; and, in very warm weather, bathe him. 
Give him fodder for an hour before you give him 
his corn, if you feed with corn ; but if with oats or 
barley, you may give either to him at the same 
time that you give him his hay. When you start 
in the morning, go on rather moderately till ten or 
eleven o'clock. Then you may go a little faster, 
and increase your pace in the afternoon. When 
you stop at night, give your horse as much corn 
and fodder as he will eat. Let hay or fodder re- 



TAMING HORSES. 8 



9 



main in the rack all night, but not the corn. Give 
him twenty or thirty ears, if he will eat so many, 
before you start. From April to the first of Sep- 
tember, feed a little at noon. Clean the mud out 
of your horse's hoofs, every now and then ; that is, 
every morning, or second morning; and, if you 
perceive that your horse often gets balls of hard, 
dry earth in them, rub soft soap upon the inside 
of them, and that will prevent the mud from 
sticking. 



A HORSE THAT IS APT TO STUMBLE 
THROUGH CARELESSNESS. 

Feed well : that, in the first place, will give him 
strength to stand upon his feet firmly, and be able 
to support his rider; and, should he still stumble, 
ride him w T ith a Spanish bridle, and hold the reins 
rather short, and check him whenever he stumbles. 
This is, perhaps, the most efficacious remedy known. 
Some horses are so constructed that they are natu- 
ral stumblers. It is very difficult to cure such a 
one of this defect, though by using him some time 
to the Spanish bit, he will stumble less. 



84 TAMING HORSES. 



HOW TO BREAK A MULE BY THE SECRET ; 

AND THE DIFFERENCE THERE IS TO BE 

OBSERVED BETWEEN A MULE AND 

A HORSE. 

A mule seems to belong to all three classes of 
horses, as to vices : it will run at a man, bite, and 
strike at him, like a horse of the first class ; it will 
again fly from him, like one of the second class ; 
and kick, and appear to be afraid of every thing, 
like a horse of the third class: and yet I have 
broken two or three in a day; and one day, I 
broke four in ten hours and a half, so that a man 
might handle their feet, and take them up with the 
greatest ease; saddle and bridle them, and put 
two or three boys upon them, and ride them 
through the streets of a populous town. This I 
did, in the city of Jalapa, seventy-five miles above 
the city of Vera Cruz, on the road to Mexico. 
But this may be looked upon as a rare case ; for it 
generally takes from six to eight hours to break a 
mule, so as to ride him with safety. Now, a man 
may know how to break a horse, according to the 
rules I have here laid down, and completely fail 



TAMING HORSES, 85 

in his first attempts upon a mule. In the first 
place, it is absolutely necessary to have a halter 
upon the mule, of that kind called a jaguima, in 
the Spanish language. Now, when I draw nigh 
them, as is indicated in the manner which I follow 
in coming up to a wild horse, for the first time, I 
always take up the rope, which is tied to the head- 
stall of the halter, and then approach with much 
precaution, but without any signs of fear, &c, &c. 
Now, as I write for the timid, as well as for the 
courageous and intrepid, and as I look upon a 
mule as a most treacherous animal, I will here state, 
that all these precautions may be rendered unneces- 
sary, by making a pen just big enough to put the 
mule in, and so high that it cannot jump over it; 
and let the bars be far enough apart to pass your 
hand between them and handle the mule. The 
pen must be made in such a manner that you can 
go around it on each side, as well behind as before, 
and be able to get upon it so as to saddle the mule, 
when you find it sufficiently gentle to proceed thus 
far. Then continue the operation as with a horse, 
but with this difference : you ought always to load 
the mule with bags of sano\ or the like, and exer- 
cise it before you ride it. A weight of about two 
hundred pounds is not too much for the first time. 
As for any thing further, do as you would with a 

horse, &c. 

8 



86 TAMING HORSES. 

The same pen you make for one mule, may serve 
for others which are of about the same size ; and 
thus you may break* in a very few days, a great 
many mules, so as to go immediately to work with 
them, without laming them by blows and rough 
usage, which is often the cause of their being re- 
fractory the rest of their lives. I have broken a 
sufficient number of them to bear witness of the 
truth of this assertion. All those persons who 
may have learnt any part of my secret of breaking 
horses in a few hours, have remained perfectly si- 
lent with regard to mules, though they have un- 
doubtedly tried their skill upon them, but in vain. 



HOW THALES, one of the seven wise men of 

Greece, CORRECTED A MULE OF THE 

HABIT OF LYING DOWN EVERY 

TIME IT PASSED A CERTAIN 

RIVER. 

Thales, one of the seven wise men of Greece, 
had a mule which used to carry loads of salt from 
one place to another, in consequence of which, it 
had to cross a very wide, but rather shallow river. 
It so happened one day, that whilst it was cross- 
ing the river, being heavily loaded, it stumbled 
and fell down, and remained some time in the 



TAMING HORSES. 



87 



middle of the water, which soon melted and washed 
away the salt that was in the bags. The animal, 
finding itself thus alleviated and discharged of its 
load, was able to jump up and pursue its journey 
without fatigue: from thence it concluded that the 
said fall and immersion in the river had been fa- 
vorable and beneficial to it ; therefore, when it had 
to cross the river a second time with a load of salt, 
it stopped in the midst of the river, and plunged 
in such a manner that its load soon melted away; 
and this happened every time it passed the stream ; 
nor was it possible to break it of this trick, either 
by words or blows, though vigorously and well- 
applied, At last, the wise Thales bethought him- 
self of this stratagem : He loaded the beast with 
a very bulky load of sponge; the mule, according 
to custom, plunged into the water, and remained 
some time; but, when it got up, it could hardly 
stagger under the weight of its load, and, instead 
of relief, found itself oppressed to such a degree, 
that it ever after crossed the river with the greatest 
care, so as not to fall in the water and increase the 
weight of its load. 



88 TAMING HORSES. 



HOW TO MAKE A DULL HORSE APPEAR 

METTLESOME AND FULL OF FIRE FOR 

A SHORT TIME. 

Take of red pepper, of the strongest kind, a 
small handful. Pound it fine, and add half a 
spoonful of vinegar to it. Put the whole into a 
small bag, made of linen, and tie it to that part of 
the crupper which goes immediately under the 
horse's tail. Buckle the crupper rather short, so 
that it will press upon the little bag, as the horse 
trots off. The juice will flow out of the bag, and 
come in contact with a certain part, which will 
immediately have the most wonderful effect upon 
the horse imaginable. He will champ his bit, if 
you hold him in, and appear to be all fire and 
mettle. When you ride off, he will hold up his 
head, stick his ears forward, lift his feet with 
agility, and caper about like a young colt. In a 
word, he will act the part of a fiery, mettlesome 
horse, full of vigor and spiritedness. 



TAMING HORSES. 89 



THAT PART, OR THOSE PARTS OF THE 
MEXICAN STATES IN WHICH THE BEST 
RACE OF HORSES IS TO BE FOUND, 
AND SOME OF THEIR QUALI- 
TIES. 

The horses that are brought to Louisiana, under 
the name of Spanish horses, generally come from 
Caahuila, Tamaulipas, and Neuvo Leon. They 
are of a pretty good size, and commonly of a vi- 
cious disposition. They are very much affected by 
the change of climate. They are likewise used to 
a better kind of grass than that growing in Loui- 
siana. They are much larger than the Creole 
horses, and when acclimated live longer. When 
mixed with the Creole horses, they form a good 
race, far better than the Creole horses. Planters 
generally suffer great loss in purchasing northern 
horses, which are so much affected by the climate 
that hundreds of them die every year. A better 
and more serviceable race of horses may be raised, 
by procuring northern mares, and putting them 
with Creole studs. They will not only stand the 
climate as well as the Creole horses, but will render 
8* 



90 TAMING HORSES. 

more service than the northern horses, and do not 
require half so much care. But a race of horses, 
far superior to either of the above-mentioned, can 
be raised, by procuring some of those beautiful 
Andalusian studs, and putting them with northern 
mares. This would be really improving the race 
of horses in this country. I would likewise advise 
the planters to procure both mares and horses, and 
raise at least some elegant riding horses from this 
Andalusian race. I have more than once mounted 
upon a fiery Arabian steed, that hardly seemed to 
touch the ground, as he bounded over the plains — 
I have likewise ridden upon some of the finest 
horses raised in New Spain — and, for my life, I 
have found it difficult to distinguish the difference 
between the former and the latter. They are of 
the same size — -their shape is the same — their long, 
floating mane the same— their beautiful, small and 
well turned hoof the same, and so hard that they 
travel over vastly high and rocky mountains, with- 
out being shod. Add to this, their* hardiness to 
undergo fatigue. I have ridden one of fliese horses 
for twenty days together, going from fifty to fifty- 
five miles a day, and frequently changing from a 
cold to a hot climate, and vice versa ; for in New 
Spain, climates are hot or cold, according as they 
are higher or lower ; and this I have done, with- 
out my horse ever appearing in the least jaded, or 



TAMING HOESES. 91 

the leaner for it. The rider himself feels much 
more at his ease, than he does when riding a heavy, 
clumsy horse, that moves along like a camel, and 
is remarkable only on account of his unwieldliness, 
and is, as a Kentuckian would say, "waste tim- 
ber ! " Besides, the Andalusian or Arabian breed 
are the most elegant easy-going horses in the world. 
They have no resemblance to those Spanish horses 
which are brought to this country. 

Now, as I have mentioned some of their quali- 
ties, I will inform the amateur where he can best 
procure them. In going by land to the Mexican 
states, the first horses of this kind to be met with, 
are raised upon the Hacienda del Xaral, (pro- 
nounced Haral, and often written with a J, Jaral,) 
two hundred and sixty miles this side of the city 
of San Louis Potosi, in the state of the same name. 
Still further on, in the states of Guanajuato and 
Quenetaro, the same race of horses is to be found, 
and likewise in other places: but, those I here 
mention, would be by far the most convenient places 
to procure them, as they are not so far distant as 
others from Tampico, should one wish to bring 
them by sea to New Orleans, nor so far from this 
state, should one prefer bringing them by land. 
All of these fine horses, I here mention, are raised 
upon the table-lands, where excessive heat is never 
felt : and yet, if you take them down to the hot 



92 TAMING HORSES. 

countries upon the coast, they will, even there, do 
double the service of one of the hot-country horses, 
in their own climate. I speak from experience, 
for I have tried both. They likewise possess ano- 
ther good quality, which is that of being the most 
sure-footed animals in the world) of the horse 
kind ; not even excepting a mule. 



CAUTION TO BE OBSERVED, IN CUTTING 

OR PARING THE HOOFS OF YOUR HORSES 

IN THIS COUNTRY, WHERE HORSES 

GENERALLY GO UNSHOD. 

When you cut or pare the hoofs of your horses, 
be careful to cut them so as not ^to let that soft 
part, which is in the middle of the foot, commonly 
called the frog, rise above the outside of the hoof; 
for if you do, it will undoubtedly make the horse 
limp. When it is too big, it must be cut off. No- 
body will do it so efficaciously as a blacksmith, 
and it is better to pay such a one some trifle than 
to lame your horse. 



TAMING HORSES. 93 



CAUTION TO THOSE WHO RAISE HORSES 
OR MULES. 

He that would raise a good stock of horses or 
mules, must have good pasture-ground, and take 
special care that the colts do not want for food in 
the winter time, and more particularly the first 
two years. More depends upon the first two years, 
than any thing that can be done afterwards ; for a 
colt that is badly fed, and allowed to suffer hunger 
and cold while he is young, will rarely or never 
make a large horse; whereas, if he has been well 
fed for two years, he is more able to support hard- 
ship afterwards, though I by no means advise any 
one to neglect him at any time. 



TO ACCUSTOM A HORSE TO STAY IN A 

PLACE. 

If you buy a horse in one part of the country, 
and take him to another, and the horse returns of 
his own accord to his former abode, cause another 
person, (if the person be his old master, so much 



94 TAMING HORSES. 

the better,) to take your horse and tie him up, and 
whip him severely, and let him stand all night 
without eating any thing whatever. In the morn- 
ing, let the same person come again to the horse, 
and give him another good discipline : immediately 
afterwards, go to your horse, mount him, and ride 
him back to the place where you wish him to stay, 
and give him some salt, and plenty to eat. Keep 
him inclosed for two days, well fed, handled and 
caressed. Then cause him to be taken to his first 
place of residence. Let any person catch him, tie 
him up, and whip him, as at first, leaving him tied 
all night, without eating. Go to him, get upon 
him, and ride him home ; caress and feed him well, 
and give him a little salt. Let him loose, at the 
end of two days, upon trial ; if he does not return 
at the end of four days, have him caught, caressed 
and fed, and salt given to him, and then let loose. 
But should he return a third time, which would 
be a rare case, repeat the discipline. I seldom or 
never knew this remedy to fail. 



TO MAKE A GENTLE HORSE, NOT USED 
TO A CARRIAGE GO IN IT. 

Harness your horse: handle him in the forehead 
a few minutes. Let some one lead him, whilst you 



TAMING HORSES. 95 

hold the reins and go behind him with a whip in 
your hand. Make him advance, by speaking to 
him ; then speak to him to stop, at the same time 
you pull upon the reins. Exercise him a few mi- 
nutes in this way, then handle him again in the 
forehead. Make him advance: let the person who 
led him now go before, at a little distance, then 
further off, till at last the horse will suffer himself 
to be driven, without any one being before him. 
Now let him drag a small piece of wood, with some 
one going before as at first, till he suffers himself 
to be driven without. Exercise him a few minutes, 
in this way, then with something larger, that will 
make considerable noise. I have always made use 
of a barrel, fixed so that it would roll round, and 
in which I put a quantity of round stones ; but, as 
stones are difficult to be procured in this part of 
the country, their place can be supplied by some- 
thing else. Give the horse a good exercise, in the 
same gentle, progressive manner as above, till he 
will suffer himself to be driven with this last load 
in every direction, without the necessity of any one 
going before him. Then put him to an empty 
cart, and continue on, in the same progressive 
manner. Never pull upon the reins, to stop your 
horse, without speaking to him. I have never yet 
failed of success in putting a horse to a coach or 
gig; but, it is certain, that there are some horses 



96 TAMDIG HORSES. 

so fiery and vicious, that few persons would have 
patience enough to succeed. I here speak of those 
horses that have contracted vicious habits, after 
having been broken for a long time. Never fail 
to give your horse a very small quantity of salt, 
after having exercised him to go in a cart or gig. 
Do not give him more than a thimble-full at a 
time. He will generally go well the first day ; but 
he ought to have a few hours exercise each day, 
for a few days. 



A HORSE THAT STOPS, AND REFUSES TO 
GO, WHEN IN A CARRIAGE. 

If a horse stops, and refuses to go, or runs back, 
go up before him, handle him in the forehead and 
coax him. If he is not an old offender, he will go 
off in about fifteen minutes. If he has been spoiled 
for a long time, it requires more patience to cor- 
rect him. 



TAMING HORSES. 97 



A MODE OF BREAKING WILD HORSES, VERY 

DIFFERENT FROM THAT DISCOVERED 

BY ME. 

I have seen a wild horse taken and shut up in a 
stable. The man who was to gentle or tame him, 
took a whip, such as a coachman uses, and went in 
to him ; and, as the horse was frightened, and ran 
away from him, he fell to whipping him most un- 
mercifully. At the end of half an hour, the horse, 
seeing it impossible to escape the whip by running 
away, advanced towards the man who had been 
his persecutor. The man threw down his whip, 
and began to handle him ; but the horse, at the 
end of a few minutes, began to be refractory, when 
he took it up again, and repeated the lesson with 
so much severity, that the horse soon came back 
to him. This he continued for some time ; when, 
at the end of about two hours, he saddled the horse 
and drove him about with his whip, making him 
come up to him every now and then, till at last he 
mounted him and rode off very well. I observed, 
that the horse frequently trembled, when he went 
to get on him, notwithstanding he rode him off 
9 G 



98 TAMING HORSES. 

pretty well ; he appeared to be afraid of many ob- 
jects he met with, and was far, very far from being 
that gentle, docile animal, tamed by the simple, 
natural means made use of in my method of break- 
ing horses. Besides this, those horses do not re- 
main gentle. I speak from experience. 



ANOTHER MODE OF BREAKING A HORSE 
FOR A FEW HOURS. 

Stop up the horse's ears, so that he cannot hear 
at all, and you can very soon handle him as if he 
were a gentle horse; but, when you unstop his 
ears, he will become as wild as ever. If you per- 
form this two or three times upon the same horse, 
it will have no effect upon him at last. 



ADVICE TO FARMERS, CONCERNING THE 
GENTLING OF YOUNG COWS. 

Though I did not intend to say any thing about 
horned cattle, it may not, perhaps, be amiss to re^ 
late what I have experienced and been eye-witness 
to, in the state of Louisiana, concerning the gen- 
tling of young cows, since. I discovered the secret 



TAMING HORSES. 99 

of breaking horses in a few hours. Whenever I 
have had a heifer or young cow to gentle, (it must 
be observed, that they are much wilder here than 
in the northern states,) I have made it a practice 
to have them tied by the horns to a post, and have 
made a servant begin to handle them well all over, 
speaking to them uninterruptedly ; and this he did 
for two or three mornings, before milking them, 
always finishing by giving them a little salt. At 
the end of three or four days, they never failed of 
becoming gentle, and could be "milked without 
being tied. Though I have seen by experience, 
that horned cattle, especially bulls, are much less 
sensible to the touch than horses, a part of which 
may possibly be owing to the thickness of their 
skin, yet even with them I have done much. Let 
any one who will, do more. 



THE ASTONISHING MANNER IN WHICH I 
TAMED OR GENTLED A WILD DEER. 

The second day after my arrival in the towm of 
Tantoyuca, I presented myself to. the first Alcade, 
or chief magistrate of the town. I showed him the 
documents I had brought with me from the Presi- 
dent and other authorities, and expressed a desire 
of putting in practice, in that town the ability I 



100 TAMING HORSES. 

possessed of taming, in a few hours, wild horses. 
The Alcade seemed to be of a morose, surly tem- 
per, and answered me, saying, he did not believe 
in witches, nor miracles, and though he said he re- 
spected the President's document, yet he believed 
he had been imposed upon, &c. He appeared not 
even disposed to give me a trial. He had a 
brother-in-law, a Spaniard, a genteel, wealthy gen- 
tleman: this man was very much disposed to fa- 
vor my undertaking. He possessed numerous 
herds of wild horses. He gave me one of his 
houses to live in, whilst I staid in the town, for I 
had my w T ife and family with me. About six 
o'clock, (this was in Febuary, 1826,) whilst we 
were all sitting at the door, taking the air, a wild 
deer came bouncing by us. It had been chased 
out of the woods by a leopard or a tiger. The 
large spotted tiger and leopard are both natives of 
this country, and are often seen within half a mile 
of the towns in the Guanteca. The deer ran down 
opposite the Alcade's house : there, a man threw a 
rope upon it, and caught it. I immediately went 
to the man, bought the deer, and told him to tie it 
and bring it up to my house. He accordingly did 
so. I untied it, and shut it up in a room, where it 
remained all night. The next morning, before 
sun-rise, I went to it, and began the operation of 
gentling; and, at nine o'clock, I made it follow 



TAMING HORSES. 101 

me to the Alcade's, accompanied by his brother- 
in-law. The Alcade was so delighted at seeing 
the deer follow me into his house, that he gave me 
every facility to perform in that town, which I 
did, and brought away a fine purse of doubloons, 
which he and his friends gave me, as a gratifica- 
tion for having broken a wild horse in their pre- 
sence. 

This deer having been shut up all night, as I 
have observed, I got up early in the morning, and 
went to the room in which it was confined. As I 
opened the door, it appeared almost frightened to 
death. I shut the door, however, and remained 
perfectly still for some time. The deer had retired 
to the further corner of the room, which was very 
small: it had turned round, and was looking at 
me. I kept my position, with my left hand 
stretched out, for half an hour before I began to 
move, as slow as possible, towards the deer, which 
kept its eyes fixed steadfast upon me, and never 
stirred, till I got nigh enough to touch it. I 
moved my hand for some time, before I dared to 
let it fall upon its head : at last, I ventured to let 
the end of my fingers fall, as lightly as possible, 
upon its head ; it trembled and flinched a little ; I 
repeated, with the greatest rapidity, those very 
light touches, and in less than five minutes, as I 
suppose, (for it was impossible for me to look at 
9* 



102 TAMING HOUSES. 

my watch without frightening the deer,) I began 
to rub it upon the head ; and, in less than half an 
hour, I took its head under my arm, and handled 
it all over in two hours from the time I went in to 
it. I made my servant and several others go to it, 
and stroke and rub it. It was a full-grown deer, 
and not less than two or three years old. The 
mode of taming it consisted in stroking it gently, 
and taking its head in my arms, &c. I relate this 
circumstance more to prove the astonishing effect 
the tact has upon some animals, and to point out 
the different ways of applying it, than from any 
benefit resulting from taming this latter kind of 
animals. 



A REMEDY FOR AN OX THAT LIES DOWN, 
AND WONT GET UP. 

I have seen some oxen lie down, when put before 
the plough, and show so much obstinacy, that they 
suffered themselves to be whipped most unmerci- 
fully, and even burnt, without showing signs of 
obedience. If an ox lies down and will not get 
up, either by gentle or rough means, tie him in 
such a manner that it will be impossible for him to 
get up. Let him remain in this situation, without 
eating or drinking, for ten hours : then untie him, 



TAMING HORSES. 103 

and he will not fail to go off. Let him go two or 
three rounds, and then feed him well. It is not 
common for him to return to his former offence, 
unless he has been an old offender ; in which case, 
let him remain tied two or three hours longer, and 
he will not fail of leaving off his old tricks! 



A CURIOUS METHOD OF TEACHING TUR- 

KIES TO DANCE AT THE SOUND OF 

THE TRIANGLE OR ANY OTHER 

MUSICAL INSTRUMENT. 

It is a well known fact, that in the East Indies, 
camels are often taught to dance at the sound of 
music. I knew that this was done by putting them 
upon hot floors, &c. They are afterwards exhibi- 
ted at public spectacles. I never had learned the 
precise course pursued ; yet notwithstanding, I un- 
dertook to teach a dog to dance. I heated large 
. pieces of tin plate, put the dog upon them, and at 
the same time struck upon a triangle, that being 
the easiest instrument I knew of. I tried this 
several times, without any other success than hav- 
ing most miserably burnt two or three dogs' feet in 
the experiments. At last, in one of my chemical 
operations, (for I was then teaching chemistry to 
a few young gentleman,) I made use of the sand- 



104 TAMING HORSES. 

bath. It immediately occurred to me, that in 
teaching an animal to dance by means of heat, the 
heat ought to be tempered by something similar to 
the sand-bath. I therefore determined to make a 
new trial; and, having no dog at hand, I made 
choice of four good-looking turkies, two males and 
two females. I made two cages ; the bottom of one 
was made of tin plates, upon which I strewed a 
certain portion of fine sand. Then I put fire under 
the cage. The turkies were in the other cage, 
which had a door of communication with the one 
having a tin bottom. When I thought the bottom 
of the cage sufficiently hot, I drove the turkies 
from the one to the other, shut the door, and be- 
gan to strike rapidly and loudly upon the triangle, 
which I held in my hand. The sensation of heat 
which the turkies experienced, caused them to skip 
about as if they had been possessed with some evil 
spirit. After letting them continue their exercise 
for a quarter of an hour or so, I opened the door 
and drove them back into the first cage, and at 
the same time stopped playing. Then I fed them 
well, and lastly turned them loose in the yard. 
The next day, I made them go through the same 
ceremony, before I gave them any thing to eat, 
and so on, for a quarter of an hour or more every 
day, for ten days ; at the end of which, I struck 
upon the triangle before I turned them into the 



TAMING HORSES. 105 

hot cage. Only one of them, more docile than the 
other three, began to jump about a little. The 
others, it is true, looked up, and seemed, as it were, 
astonished. I was then fully convinced that they 
would all shortly learn to dance, if I continued the 
same method of giving them lessons. I accord- 
ingly continued on, in the same manner, for twenty 
days more ; at the end of which, I let them loose 
one day in a room, and began to strike violently 
upon the triangle. All four of the turkies began 
to skip and run about, keeping pretty close to one 
another, and changing every minute their position. 
It was the most ludicrous, and, at the same time, 
entertaining sight imaginable. The impression 
which the sound of the triangle had made upon 
them, on account of their having felt the heat at 
the bottom of the cage, every time they had heard 
that music, became a lasting one ; and they would 
begin to dance, ever after, though in the yard 
amidst the other turkies, whenever they heard the 
sound of that instrument. They generally separa- 
ted themselves from the others, and run together. 
They may be taught with any other instrument, as 
well as with the triangle. It will take much 
longer to teach a dog, than a turkey. The reason 
is, as I suppose, that the dog is not so easily de- 
ceived. The only difficulty attending this mode 
of teaching turkies to dance is, to keep your tin 



106 TAMING HORSES. 

plates neither too hot nor too cold ; for, if too hot, 
they will get their feet burnt; and, if too cold, they 
won't dance. I sold the four above-mentioned 
turkies, for four doubloons, to a man who went 
about exhibiting various curiosities. 



REMEDY FOR THE GRIPES, OR COLIC. 

Give to the horse a pint of port or claret wine, 
with a small nutmeg grated fine, and half a spoon- 
ful of powdered ginger, all well mixed, and given 
rather hotter than lukewarm. The best method is 
to get ready some boiling hot water, then put the 
nutmeg and ginger, together with a little loaf sugar, 
into a vessel, and pour the hot water upon them, 
and cover it for three minutes ; then add the wine, 
and give this dose to the horse pretty warm. It 
generally gives relief in a short time. My inten- 
tion is not to say any thing upon farriery, except 
two or three of the most common diseases to which 
horses are subject. Much has already been writ- 
ten by able professors. 



TAMING HORSES. 10' 



CONCERNING THE BOTS. 

In twenty-seven years time, I never had a horse 
die of the bots. I believe that almost every body 
is convinced that the bots come from the eggs or 
knits, which are deposited upon the horse's hair, 
by that troublesome fly, resembling a bee in color. 
This has always been my opinion. Now, as it is 
generally known, that a horse that has the bots, 
does not appear to suffer, till he is too far gone to 
be cured, to prevent the fatal effects of this disease, 
I have made it a practice to give my horses, in the 
month of September, the following remedy : Of 
olive oil, honey and lemon-juice, each, two ounces 
and a half : mix and give these to the horse; the 
next day purge well. Whether a horse be inclined 
or not to have the bots, this remedy will do him no 
hurt. 



THE BLIND STAGGERS. 

It is believed, that the disease called staggers, 
is generally occasioned by a diseased state of the 



108 TAMING HORSES. 

stomach. Copious and timely bleeding is the 
sheet-anchor on which we must depend. I shall, 
however, give the following recipe, which has often 
proved serviceable : Take of oil of peppermint, one 
scruple; tincture of valerian, one ounce; assafoe- 
tida, five drachms : mix for a dose. 



TAMINGOF WILD HORSES 
By J. S. KAREY, 

THE AMERICAN HORSE TAMER. 



THE THEEE FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF 
MY THEORY; 

Founded on the Leading Characteristics -of the Horse, 

First. — That lie is so constituted by nature that 
he will not offer resistance to any demand made of 
him which he fully comprehends, if made in a way 
consistent with the laws of his nature. 

Second. — That he has no consciousness of his 
strength beyond his experience, and can be han- 
dled according to our will without force. 

Third. — That we can, in compliance with the 
laws of his nature by which he examines all things 
new to him, take any object, however frightful 
around, over, or on him, that does not inflict pain, 
without causing him to fear. 
10 



110 TAMING HORSES. 

To take these assertions in order, I will first give 
you some of the reasons why I think he is natu- 
rally obedient, and will not offer resistance to any- 
thing fully comprehended. The horse, though 
'possessed of some faculties superior to man's, being 
deficient in reasoning powers, has no knowledge of 
right or wrong, of free will and independent 
government, and knows not of any imposition 
practised upon him, however unreasonable these 
impositions may be. Consequently, he cannot 
come to any decision as to what he should or 
should not do, because he has not the reasoning fa- 
culties of man to argue the justice of the thing de- 
manded of him. If he had, taking into considera- 
tion his superior strength, he would be useless to 
man as a servant. Give him mind in proportion 
to his strength, and he will demand of us the green 
fields for his inheritance, where he will roam at 
leisure, denying the right of servitude at all. God 
has wisely formed his nature so that it can be ope- 
rated upon by the knowledge of man according to 
the dictates of his will; and he might well be^ 
termed an unconscious, submissive servant. This 
truth we can see verified in every day's experience 
by the abuses practiied upon him. Any one who 
chooses to be so cruel, can mount the noble steed 
and run him till he drops with fatigue, or, as is 
often the case with the more spirited, falls dead be- 



TAMING HOESES. Ill 

neath his rider. If he had the power to reason, 
would he not rear and pitch his rider, rather than 
suffer him to run him to death ? Or would he con- 
descend to cany at all the yain impostor, who, 
with but equal intellect, was trying to impose on 
his equal rights and equally independent spirit. 
But happily for us, he has no consciousness of im- 
position, no thought of disobedience except by im- 
yulse caused by the violation of the law of his na- 
ture. Consequently, when disobedient, it is the 
fault of man. 

Then, we can but come to the conclusion that, if 
a horse is not taken in a way at variance with the 
laws of his nature, he will do anything that he 
fully comprehends, without making any offer of 
resistance. 

Second — The fact of the horse being unconscious 
of the amount of his strength can be proven to the 
satisfaction of any one. For instance, such re- 
marks as these are common, and perhaps familiar 
to your recollection. One person says to another, 
"If that wild horse there was conscious of the 
amount of his strength, his owner would have no 
business with him in that vehicle ; such light reins 
and harness too — if he knew he could snap them 
asunder in a minute and be as free as the air we 
breathe ; " and, " That horse yonder, that is paw- 
ing and fretting to follow the company that is fast 



112 TAMING HORSES. 

leaving him — if he knew his strength, he would 
not remain long fastened to that hitching post so 
much against his will, by a strap that would no 
more resist his powerful weight and strength than 
a cotton thread would bind a strong man." Yet 
these facts, made common by every-day occurrence, 
are not thought of as anything wonderful. Like 
the ignorant man who looks at the different phases 
of the moon, you look at these things as he looks 
at her different changes without troubling your 
mind with the question, " Why are these things 
so?" What would be the condition of the world 
if all our minds lay dormant? If men did not 
think, reason, and act, our undisturbed, slumbering 
intellects would not excel the imbecility of the 
brute ; we should live in chaos, hardly aware of 
our existence. And yet, with all our activity of 
mind, we daily pass by unobserved that which 
would be wonderful if philosophized and reasoned 
upon ; and with the same inconsistency wonder at 
that which a little consideration, reason, and philo- 
sophy would make but a simple affair. 

Third — He will allow any object, however fright- 
ful in appearance, to come around, over, or on him, 
that does not inflict pain. 

We know from a natural course of reasoning, 
that there has never been an effect without a cause, 
and we infer from this, that there can be no action 




LEG STRAP. 




MR. RAREY'S EXTRA STRAP. 



TAMING HORSES. 113 

either in animate or inanimate matter, without 
there first being some cause to produce it. And 
from this self-evident fact we know that there is 
some cause for every impulse or movement of either 
mind or matter, and that this law governs every 
action or movement of the animal kingdom. Then, 
according to this theory, there must be some cause 
before fear can exist ; and, if fear exists from the 
effect of imagination, and not from the infliction 
of real pain, it can be removed by complying with 
those laws of nature by which the horse examines 
an object, and determines upon its innocence or 
harm. 

A log or stump by the road side may be, in the 
imagination of the horse, some great beast about to 
pounce upon him ; but after you take him up to it 
and let him stand by it a little while, and touch it 
with his nose, and go through his process of exami- 
nation, he will not care anything more about it. 
And the same principle and process will have the 
same effect with any other object, however fright- 
ful in appearance, in which there is no harm. 
Take a boy that has been frightened by a false 
face, or any other object that he could not compre- 
hend at once ; but let him take that face, or object 
in his hands and examine it, and he will not care 
anything more about it. This is a demonstration 
of the same principle. 

10* H 



114 TAMING HORSES. 

With this introduction to the principles of my 
theory, I shall next attempt to teach you how to 
put it into practice; and, whatever instructions 
may follow you can rely on, as having been proven 
practically by my own experiments. And know- 
ing from experience just what obstacles I have met 
with in handling bad horses, I shall try to antici- 
pate them for you, and assist you in surmounting 
them, by commencing with the first steps to be 
taken with the colt, and accompany you through 
the whole task of breaking. 



HOW TO SUCCEED IN GETTING THE COLT 
FROM PASTURE. 

Go to the pasture and walk around the whole 
herd quietly, and at such a distance as not to cause 
them to scare and run. Then approach them very 
slowly, and if they stick up their heads and seem 
to be frightened, wait until they become quiet, 
so as not to make them run before you are close 
enough to drive them in the direction you want 
them to go. And when you begin to drive, do not 
flourish your arms or halloo, but gently follow 
them off, leaving the direction free for them that 
you wish them to take. Thus taking advantage 
of their ignorance, you will be able to get them 



TAMING HORSES. 115 

into the pound as easily as the hunter drives the 
quails into his net. For, if they have always run 
in the pasture uncared for (as many horses do in 
prairie countries and on large plantations), there 
is no reason why they should not be as wild as the 
sportsman's birds, and require the same gentle 
treatment, if you want to get them without trouble ; 
for the horse in his natural state, is as wild as any 
of the undomesticated animals, though more easily 
tamed than the most of them. 



HOW TO STABLE A COLT WITHOUT TROU- 
BLE. 

The next step will be, to get the horse into a 
stable or shed. This should be done as quietly as 
possible, so as not to excite any suspicion in the 
horse of any danger befalling him. The best way 
to do this, is to lead a gentle horse into the stable 
first, and hitch him, then quietly walk around the 
colt and let him go in of his own accord. It is al- 
most impossible to get men who have never prac- 
tised on this principle to go slowly and considerately 
enough about it. They do not know that in hand- 
ling a wild horse, above all other things, is that 
good old adage true, that " haste makes waste ; " 
that is, waste of time— for the gain of trouble and 
perplexity. 



116 TAMING HORSES. 

One wrong move may frighten your horse, and 
make him think it necessary to escape at all haz- 
ards for the safety of his life — and thus make two 
hours' work of a ten minutes' job; and this would 
be all your own fault, and entirely unnecessary — 
for he will not run unless you run after him, and 
that would not be good policy unless you knew 
that you could outrun him, for you will have to 
let him stop of his own accord after all. But he 
will not tr^ to break away unless you attempt to 
force him into measures. If he does not see the 
way at once, and is a little fretful about going in, 
do not undertake to drive him, but give him- a 
little less room outside, by gently closing in around 
him. Do not raise your arms, but let them hang 
at your side, for you might as well raise a club : 
the horse has never studied anatomy, and does not 
know but that they will unhinge themselves and 
fly at him. If he attempts to turn back, walk be- 
fore him, but do not run ; and if he gets past you, 
encircle him again in the same quiet manner, and 
he will soon find that you are not going to hurt 
him ; and then you can walk so close around him 
that he will go into the stable for more room, and 
to get farther from you. As soon as he is in, re- 
move the quiet horse and shut the door. This will 
be his first notion of confinement — not knowing 
how he got into such a place, nor how to get out 



TAMItfG HORSES. 117 

of it. That he may take it as quietly as possible, 
see that the shed is entirely free from dogs, chick- 
ens, or anything that would annoy him. Then 
give him a few ears of corn, and let him remain 
alone fifteen or twenty minutes, until he has exa- 
mined his apartment, and has become reconciled 
to his confinement. 

TIME TO REFLECT. 

And now, while your horse is eating those few 
ears of corn, is the proper time to see that your 
halter is ready and all right, and to reflect on the 
best mode of operations ; for in horsebreaking it is 
highly important that you should be governed by 
some system. And you should know, before you 
attempt to do anything, just what you are going to 
do, and how you are going to do it. And, if you 
are experienced in the art of taming wild horses, 
you ought to be able to tell, within a few minutes, 
the length of time it would take you to halter the 
colt, and teach him to lead. 

THE KIND OF HALTER. 

Always use a leather halter, and be sure to have 
it made so that it will not draw tight around his 
nose if he palls on it. It should be of the right 
size to fit his head easily and nicely ; so that the 
nose-band will not be too tight or too low. Never 



• # 



118 TAMING HORSE8. 

put a rope halter on an unbroken colt, under any 
circumstances whatever. They have caused more 
horses to hurt or kill themselves than would pay 
for twice the cost of all the leather halters that 
have ever been needed for the purpose of haltering 
colts. It is almost impossible to break a colt that 
is very wild with a rope h alter, without having 
him pull, rear, and throw himself, and thus endan- 
ger his life ; and I will tell you why. It is just as 
natural for a horse to try to get his head out of 
anything that hurts it, or feels unpleasant, as it 
would be for you to try to get your hand out of a 
fire. The cords of the rope are hard and cutting ; 
this makes him raise his head and draw on it, and 
as soon as he pulls, the slip noose (the way rope 
halters are always made) tightens, and pinches his 
nose, and then he will struggle for life, until, per- 
chance, he throws himself; and who would have 
his horse throw himself, and run the risk of break- 
ing his neck, rather than pay the price of a leather 
halter? But this is not the worst. A horse that 
has once pulled on his halter can never be as well 
broken as one that has never pulled at all. 

REMARKS ON THE HORSE. 

But before we attempt to do anything more with 
the colt, I will give you some of the characteristics 
of his nature, that you may better understand his 



*• 



TAMING HORSES. 119 

motions. Every one that has ever paid any atten- 
tion to the horse, has noticed his natural inclina- 
tion to smell everything which to him looks new 
and frightful. This is their strange mode of exa- 
mining everything. And, when they are fright- 
ened at anything, though they look at it sharply, 
they seem to have no confidence in this optical ex- 
amination alone, but must touch it with the nose 
before they are entirely satisfied ; and, as soon as 
this is done, all is right. 

EXPERIMENT WITH THE ROBE. 

If you want to satisfy yourself of this character- 
istic of the horse, and to learn something of impor- 
tance concerning the peculiarities of his nature, 
&c, turn him into the barn-yard, or a large stable 
will do, and then gather up something that you 
know will frighten him — -a red blanket, buffalo- 
robe, or something of that kind. Hold it up so 
that he can see it, he will stick up his head and 
snort. Then throw it down somewhere in the cen- 
tre of the lot or barn, and walk off to one side. 
Watch his motions, and study his nature. If he 
is frightened at the object, he will not rest until he 
has touched it with his nose. You will see him 
begin to walk around the robe and snort, all the 
time getting a little closer, as if drawn up by some 
magic spell, until he finally gets within .reach of it. 



%P 



120 TAMING HOKSES. 

He will then very cautiously stretch out his neck 
as far as he can reach, merely touching it with his 
nose, as though he thought it was ready to fly at 
him. But after he has repeated these touches a 
few times, for the first time (though he has been 
looking at it all the while,) he seems to have an 
idea what it is. But now he has found, by the 
sense of feeling, that it is nothing that will do him 
any harm, and he is ready to play with it. And 
if you watch him closely, you will see him take 
hold of it with his teeth, and raise it up and pull 
at it. And in a few minutes you can see that he 
has not that same wild look about his eye, but 
stands like a horse biting at some familiar stump. 
Yet the horse is never so well satisfied when he 
is about anything that has frightened him, as when 
he is standing with his nose to it. And, in nine 
cases out of ten, you will see some of that same 
wild look about him again, as he turns to walk 
from it. And you will probably see him looking 
back very suspiciously as he walks away, as though 
he thought it might come after him yet. And in all 
probability, he will have to go back and make ano- 
ther examination before he is satisfied. But he 
will familiarize himself with it, and, if he should 
run in that lot a few days, the robe that frightened 
him so much at first will be no more to him than a 
familiar stump. 



TAMING HORSES. 121 



SUGGESTIONS ON THE HABIT OF SMELLING, 

We might very naturally suppose from the fact 
of the horse's applying his nose to everything new 
to him, that he always does so for the purpose of 
smelling these objects; but I believe that it is as 
much or more for the purpose of feeling, and that 
he makes use of his nose, or muzzle, (as it is some- 
times called), as we would of our hands; because 
it is the only organ by which he can touch or feel 
anything with much susceptibility. 

I believe that he invariably makes use of the 
four senses — seeing, hearing, smelling, and feeling — - 
in all of his examinations, of which the sense of 
feeling is, perhaps, the most important, And I 
think that, in the experiment with the robe, his 
gradual approach and final touch with his nose 
was as much for the purpose of feeling as anything 
else, his sense of smell being so keen that it would 
not be necessary for him to touch his nose against 
anything in order to get the proper scent ; for it is 
said that a horse can smell a man at the distance 
of a mile. And if the scent of the robe was all 
that was necessary, he could get that several rods 
11 



122 TAMING HORSES. 

off. Bat we know from experience, that if a horse 
sees and smells a robe a short distance from him, 
he is very much frightened (unless he is used to 
it) until he touches or feels it with his nose ; which 
is a positive proof that feeling is the controlling 
sense in this case. 

PREVAILING OPINION OF HORSEMEN. 

It is a prevailing opinion among horsemen gene- 
rally that the sense of smell is the governing sense 
of the horse. And Faucher, as well as others, has 
with that view got up receipts of strong smelling 
oils, &c, to tame the horse, sometimes using the 
chestnut of his leg, which they dry, grind into 
powder, and blow into his nostrils, sometimes using 
the oils of rhodium, origanum, &c, that are noted 
for their strong smell ; and sometimes they scent 
the hand with the sweat from under the arm, or 
blow their breath into his nostrils, &c, &c. All 
of which, as far as the scent goes, have no effect 
whatever in gentling the horse, or conveying any 
idea to his mind ; though the acts that accompany 
these efforts — handling him, touching him about 
the nose and head, and patting him, as they direct 
you should, after administering the articles, may 
have a very great effect, which they mistake to be 
the effect of the ingredients used. And Faucher, 
in his work, entitled "The Arabian Art of Taming 



TAMING HORSES. 123 

Horses/' page 17, tells us how to accustom a horse 
to a robe, by administering certain articles to his 
nose; and goes on to say that these articles must 
first be applied to the horse's nose before you 
attempt to break him, in order to operate success- 
fully. 

Now, reader, can you, or any one else, give one 
single reason how scent can convey any idea to the 
horse's mind of what we want him to do ? If not, 
then of course strong scents of any kind are of no 
avail in taming the unbroken horse. For, every- 
thing that we get him to do of his own accord, 
without force, must be accomplished by some means 
of conveying our ideas to his mind. I say to my 
horse, " Go-'long! " and he goes. " Ho ! " and he 
stops ; because these two words, of which he has 
learned the meaning by the tap of the whip and 
the pull of the rein that first accompanied them, 
convey the two ideas to his mind of go and stop. 

Neither Faucher, nor any one else, can ever 
teach the horse a single thing by the means of 
scent alone. 

How long do you suppose a horse would have to 
stand and smell a bottle of oil before he would 
learn to bend his knee and make a bow at your 
bidding, "Go yonder and bring your hat," or 
"Come here and lie down"? Thus you see the 
absurdity of trying to break or tame the horse by 



124 TAMING HORSES. 

the means of receipts for articles to smell at, or 
medicine to give him, of any kind whatever. 

The only science that has ever existed in the 
world, relative to the breaking of horses, that has 
been of any value, is that true method which takes 
them in their native state, and improves their in- 
telligence. 

POWEL'S SYSTEM OF APPROACHING THE 

COLT. 

But, before we go further, I will give you Willis 
J. Powel's system of approaching a wild colt, as 
given by him in a work on the " Art of Taming 
Wild Horses." He says, " A horse is gentled by 
my secret in from two to sixteen hours." The time 
I have most commonly employed has been from 
four to six hours. He goes on to say, (see page 
35, of this work). 



REMARKS ON POWEL'S TREATMENT.— HOW 
TO GOVERN HORSES OF ANY KIND. 

These instructions are very good, but not quite 
sufficient for horses of all kinds, and for haltering 
and leading the colt; but I have inserted them 
here because they give some of the true philosophy 
of approaching the horse, and of establishing con- 



TAMING HORSES. 125 

fidence between man and horse. He speaks only 
of the kind that fear man. 

To those who understand the philosophy of horse- 
manship, these are the easiest trained ; for when 
we have a horse that is wild and lively, we can 
train him to our will in a very short time — for they 
are generally quick to learn, and always ready to 
obey. But there is another kind that are of a 
stubborn or vicious disposition ; and although they 
are. not wild, and do not require taming in the 
sense it is generally understood, they are just as 
ignorant as a wild horse, if not more so, and need 
to be taught just as much : and in order to have 
them obey quickly, it is very necessary that they 
should be made to fear their master; for, in order 
to obtain perfect obedience from any horse, we 
must first have him fear us, for oar motto is, fear, 
love, and obey ; and we must have the fulfilment 
of the first two before we can expect the latter ; for 
it is by our philosophy of creating fear, love, and 
confidence, that we govern to our will every kind 
of horse whatever. 

Then, in order to take horses as we find them, 
of all kinds, and to train them to our liking, we 
will always take with us, when we go into a stable 
to train a colt, a long switch whip (whalebone 
buggy-whips are the best), with a good silk cracker 

so as to cut keenly and make a sharp report, which , 
11* 



126 TAMING HORSES. 

if handled with dexterity, and rightly applied, ac- 
companied with a sharp fierce word, will be suffi- 
cient to enliven the spirits of any horse. With 
this whip in your right hand, with the lash point- 
ing backward, enter the stable alone. It is a great 
disadvantage in training a horse to have any one 
in the stable with you; you should be entirely 
alone, so as to have nothing but yourself to attract 
his attention. If he is wild, you will soon see him 
on the opposite side of the stable from you ; and 
now is the time to use a little judgment. I should 
not want, for myself, more than half or three- 
quarters of ah hour to handle any kind of a colt, 
and have him running about in the stable after me ; 
though I would advise a new beginner to take 
more time, and not be in too much of a hurry. If 
you have but one colt to gentle, and are not par- 
ticular about the length of time you spend, and 
have not had any experience in handling colts, I 
would advise you to take Mr. Powel's method at 
first, till you gentle him, which he says takes from 
two to six hours. But as I want to accomplish the 
same, and what is more, teach the horse to lead, in 
less than one hour, I shall give you a much quicker 
process of accomplishing the same end. Accord- 
ingly, when you have entered the stable, stand still, 
and let your horse look at you a minute or two, 
and as soon as he is settled in one place, approach 



TAMING HORSES. 127 

him slowly, with both arms stationary, your right 
hanging by your side, holding the whip as directed 
and the left bent at the elbow, with your hand 
projecting. As you approach him, go not too much 
towards his head or croup, so as not to make him 
move either forward or backward, thus keeping 
your horse stationary; if he does move a little 
either forward or backward, step a little to the 
right or left very cautiously ; this will keep him in 
one place. As you get very near him, draw a 
little to his shoulder, and stop a few seconds. If 
you are in his reach he will turn his head and 
smell your hand, not that he has any preference 
for your hand, but because that is projecting, and 
is the nearest portion of your body to the horse. 
This all colts will do, and they will smell your na- 
ked hand just as quickly as they will anything 
that you can put in it, and with just as good an 
effect, however much some men have preached the 
doctrine of taming horses by giving them the scent 
of articles from the hand. I have already proved 
that to be a mistake. As soon as he touches his 
nose to your hand, caress him as before directed, 
always using a very light soft hand, merely touch- 
ing the horse, always rubbing the way the hair 
lies, so that your hand will pass along as smoothly 
as possible. As you stand by his side, you may 
find it more convenient to rub his neck or the side 



128 TAMING HORSES. 

of his head, which will answer the same purpose as 
rubbing his forehead. Favour every inclination of 
the horse to smell or touch you with his nose. Al- 
ways follow each touch or communication of this 
kind with the most tender and affectionate caresses, 
accompanied with a kind look, and pleasant word 
of some sort, such as ," Ho ! my little boy — ho ! my 
little boy ! " " Pretty boy ! " " Nice lady ! " or some- 
thing of that kind, constantly repeating the same 
words, with the same kind, steady tone of voice ; for 
the horse soon learns to read the expression of the 
face and voice, and will know as well when fear, 
love, or anger prevails, as you know your own feel- 
ings ; two of which, fear and anger, a good horse- 
man should never feel. - 



HOW TO PROCEED IF YOUR HORSE BE OF 
A STUBBORN DISPOSITION. 

If your horse, instead of being wild, seems to be 
of a stubborn or mulish disposition ; if he lays back 
his ears as you approach him, or turns his heels to 
kick you, he has not that regard or fear of man 
that he should have, to enable you to handle him 
quickly and easily ; and it might be well to give 
him a few sharp cuts with the whip, about the legs, 
pretty close to the body. It will crack keenly as 



TAMING HORSES. 129 

it plies around his legs, and the crack of the whip 
will affect him as much as the stroke ; besides, one 
sharp cut about his legs will affect him more than 
two or three over his back, the skin on the inner 
part of his legs or about his flank being thinner, 
more tender, than on his back. But do not whip 
him much — just enough to scare him ; it is not be- 
cause we want to hurt the horse that we whip him, 
we only do it to scare that bad disposition out of 
him. But whatever you do, do quickly, sharply, 
and with a good deal of fire, but always without 
anger. If you are going to scare him at all you 
must do it at once. Never go into a pitched bat- 
tle with your horse, and whip him until he is mad 
and will fight you ; you had better not touch him 
at all, for you will establish, instead of fear and 
regard, feelings of resentment, hatred, and ill-will. 
It will do him no good, but an injury, to strike a 
blow, unless you can scare him ; but if you succeed 
in scaring him, you can whip him without making 
him mad ; for fear and anger never exist together 
in the horse, and as soon as one is visible, you will 
find that the other has disappeared. As soon as 
you have frightened him so that he will stand up 



straight and pay some attention to you, approach 
him again, and caress him a good deal more than 
you whipped him, then you will excite the two 
controlling passions of his nature, love and fear, 

I 



130 TAMING HOBSES. 

and then he will love and fear you too, and, as 
soon as he learns what to do, will obey quickly. 



HOW TO HALTER AND LEAD A COLT. 

As soon as you have gentled the colt a little, 
take the halter in your left hand and approach 
him as before, and on the same side that you have 
gentled him. If he is very timid about your ap- 
proaching closely to him, you can get up to him 
quicker by making the whip a part of your arm, 
and reaching out very gently with the butt-end of 
it ; rubbing him lightly on the neck, all the time 
getting a little closer, shortening the whip by 
taking it up in your hand, until you finally get 
close enough to put your hands on him. If he is 
inclined to hold his head from you, put the end of 
the halter-strap around his neck, drop your whip, 
and draw very gently ; he will let his neck give, 
and you can pull his head to you. Then take hold 
of that part of the halter which buckles over the 
top of his head, and pass the long side, or that 
part which goes into the buckle, under his neck, 
grasping it on the opposite side with your right 
hand, letting the first strap loose— the latter will 
be sufficient to hold his head to you. Lower the 
halter a little, just enough to get his nose into that 



TAMING HORSES. 131 

part which goes around it ; then raise it somewhat, 
and fasten the top buckle, and you will have it all 
right. The first time you halter a colt you should 
stand on the left side, pretty well back to his 
shoulder, only taking hold of that part of the hal- 
ter that goes round his neck ; then with your two 
hands about his neck you can hold his head to 
you, and raise the halter on it without making him 
dodge by putting your hands about his nose. You 
should have a long rope or strap ready, and as 
soon as you have the halter on, attach this to it, so 
that you can let him walk the length of the stable 
without letting go of the strap, or without making 
him pull on the halter, for if you only let him feel 
the weight of your hand on the halter, and give 
him rope when he runs from you, he will never 
rear, pull, or throw himself, yet you will be hold- 
ing him all the time, and doing more towards gen- 
tling him than if you had the power to snub him 
right up and hold him to one spot ; because, he 
does not know anything about his strength, and if 
you don't do anything to make him pull, he will 
never know that he can. In a few minutes you 
can begin to control him wdth the halter, then 
shorten the distance between yourself and the horse 
by taking up the strap in your hand. 

As soon as he will allow you to hold him by a 
tolerably short strap, and to step up to him with- 



132 TAMING HORSES. 

out flying back, you can begin to give some idea 
about leading. But to do this, do not go before 
and attempt to pull him after you, but commence 
by pulling him very quietly to one side. He has 
nothing to brace either side of his neck, and will 
soon yield to a study, gradual pull of the halter ; 
and as soon as you have pulled him a step or two 
to one side, step up to him and caress him, and then 
pull him again, repeating this operation until you 
can pull him around in every direction, and walk 
about the stable with him, which you can do in a 
few minutes, for he will soon think when you have 
made him step to the right or left a few times, that 
he is compelled to follow the pull of the halter, not 
knowing that he has the power to resist your pul- 
ling; besides you have handled him so gently that 
he is not afraid of you, and you always caress him 
when he comes up to you, and he likes that, and 
would just as lief follow you as not. And after he 
has had a few lessons of that kind, if you turn him 
out in a lot, he will come up to you every oppor- 
tunity he gets. You should lead him about in the 
stable some time before you take him out, opening 
the door, so that he can see out, leading him up to 
it and back again, and past it. See that there is 
nothing on the outside to make him jump when 
you take him out, and as you go out with him, try 
to make him go very slowly, catching hold of the 



TAMING HORSES. 133 

halter close to the jaw with your left hand, while 
the right is resting on the top of the neck, holding 
to his mane. After you are out with him a little 
while, you can lead him about as you please. 
Don't let any second person come up to you when 
you first take him out ; a stranger taking hold of 
the halter would frighten him, and make him run. 
There should not even be any one standing near 
him, to attract his attention or scare him. If you 
are alone, and manage him rightly, it will not re- 
quire any more force to lead or hold him than it 
would to manage a broken horse. 



HOW TO LEAD A COLT BY THE SIDE OF 
A BROKEN HORSE. 

If you should want to lead your colt by the side 
of another horse, as is often the case, I would ad- 
vise you to take your horse into the stable, attach 
a second strap to the colt's halter, and lead your 
horse up alongside of him. Then get on the broken 
horse and take one strap around his breast, under 
his martingale (if he has any on), holding it in 
your left hand. This will prevent the colt from 
getting back too far ; besides, you will have more 
power to hold him with the strap pulling against 
the horse's breast. The other strap take up in 
12 



134 TAMING HORSES. 

your right hand to prevent him from running 
ahead; then turn him about a few times in the 
stable, and if the door is wide enough, ride out 
with him in that position ; if not, take the broken 
horse out first, and stand his breast up against the 
door, then lead the colt to the same spot, and take 
the straps as before directed, one on each side of 
his neck, then let some one start the colt out, and 
as he comes out, turn your horse to the left, and 
you will have them all rightv This is the best 
way to lead a colt ; you can manage any kind of 
colt in this way, without any trouble; for if he 
tries to run ahead, or pull back, the two straps 
will bring the horses facing each other, so that you 
can very easily follow up his movements without 
doing much holding, and as soon as he stops run- 
ning backward you are right with him, and all 
ready to go ahead ; and if he gets stubborn and 
does not want to go, you can remove all his stub- 
bornness by riding your horse against his neck, 
thus compelling him to turn to the right ; and as 
soon as you have turned him about a few times, he 
will be willing to go along. The next thing, after 
you have got through leading him, will be to take 
him into a stable, and hitch him in such a way as 
not to have him pull on the halter, and as they are 
often troublesome to get into a stable the first few 
times, I will give you some instructions about get- 
ting him in. 



TAMING HORSES. 135 



HOW TO LEAD A COLT INTO THE STABLE 

AND HITCH HIM WITHOUT HAVING 

HIM PULL ON THE HALTER. 

You should lead the broken horse into the stable 
first, and get the colt, if you can, to follow in after 
him. If he refuses to go, step up to him, taking a 
little stick or switch in your right hand ; then take 
hold of the halter close to his head with your left 
hand, at the same time reaching over his back with 
your right arm, so that you can tap him on the 
opposite side with your switch ; bring him up fa- 
cing the door, tap him lightly with your switch, 
reaching as far back with it as you can. This tap- 
ping, by being pretty well back, and on the oppo- 
site side, will drive him ahead, and keep him close 
to you ; then, by giving him the right direction 
with your left hand you can walk into, the stable 
with him. I have walked colts into the stable in 
this way in less than a minute, after men had 
worked at them half an hour, trying to pull them 
in. If you cannot walk him in at once in this way, 
turn him about and walk him around in every di- 
rection, until you can get him up to the door with- 



136 TAMING HORSES. 

out pulling at him. Then let him stand a few mi- 
nutes, keeping his head in the right direction with 
the halter, and he will walk in in less than ten 
minutes. Never attempt to pull the colt into the 
stable ; that would make him think at once that it 
was a dangerous place, and if he was not afraid of 
it before he would be then. Besides, we do not 
want him to know anything about pulling on the 
halter. Colts are often hurt, and sometimes killed, 
by trying to force them into the stable ; and those 
who attempt to do it in that way go into an up- 
hill business, when a plain smooth road is before 
them. 

If you want to hitch your colt, put him in a tol- 
erably wide stall, which should not be too long, 
and should be connected by a bar or something of 
that kind to the partition behind it; so that, after 
the colt is in, he cannot get far enough back to 
take a straight, backward pull on the halter; then, 
by hitching him in the centre of the stall, it would 
be impossible for him to pull on the halter, the 
partition .behind preventing him from going back, 
and the halter in the centre checking him every 
time he turns to the right or left. In a stall of 
this kind you can break any horse to stand hitched 
by a light strap, anywhere, without his ever know- 
ing anything about pulling. But if you have bro- 
ken your horse to lead, and have learned him the 



TAMING HORSES. 137 



/ 



use of the halter (which you should always do be- 
fore you hitch him to anything), you can hitch him 
in any kind of a stall, and give him something to 
eat to keep him up to his place for a few minutes 
at first, and there is not one colt in fifty that will 
pull on his halter. 



THE KIND OF BIT, AND HOW TO ACCUS- 
TOM A HORSE TO IT. 

You should use a large, smooth, snaffle-bit, so as 

not to hurt his mouth, with a bar to each side, to 

prevent the bit from pulling through either way. 

This you should attach to the head-stall of your 

bridle, and put it on your colt without any reins 

to it, and let him run loose in a large stable or 

shed some time, until he becomes a little used to 

the bit, and will bear it without trying to get it 

out of his mouth. It would be well, if convenient, 

to repeat this several times, before you do anything 

more with the colt ; as soon as he will bear the bit, 

attach a single rein to it, without any martingale. 

You should also have a halter on your colt, or a 

bridle made after the fashion of a halter, with a 

strap to it, so that you can hold or lead him about 

without pulling on the bit much. He is now ready 

for the saddle. 
12* 



138 TAMING HORSES. 



HOW TO SADDLE A COLT. 

Any one man who understands this theory can 
put a saddle on the wildest colt that ever grew, 
without any help, and without scaring him. The 
first thing will be to tie each stirrup-strap into a 
loose knot to make them short, and prevent the 
stirrups from flying about and hitting him. Then 
double up the skirts, and take the saddle under 
your right arm, so as not to frighten him with it 
as you approach. When you get to him, rub him 
gently a few times with your hand, and then raise 
the saddle very slowly, until he can see it, and 
smell it, and feel it with his nose. Then let the 
skirt loose, and rub it very gently against his neck 
the way the hair lies, letting him hear the rattle 
of the skirts as he feels them against him — each 
time getting a little farther backward, and finally 
slip it over his shoulders on his back. Shake it a 
little with your hand, and in less than five minutes 
you can rattle it about over his back as much as 
you please, and pull it off and throw it on again, 
without his paying much attention to it. 

As soon as you have accustomed him to the sad- 



TAMING HORSES. 139 

die, fasten the girth. Be careful how you do this. 
It often frightens the colt when he feels the girth 
binding hirn, and making the saddle fit tight on 
his back. You should bring up the girth very 
gently, and not draw it too tight at first, just 
enough to hold the saddle on. Move him a little, 
and then girth it as tight as you choose, and he 
will not mind it. 

You should see that the pad of your saddle is 
all right before you put it on, and that there is 
nothing to make it hurt him, or feel unpleasant to his 
back. It should not have any loose straps on the 
back part of it, to flap about and scare him. After 
you have saddled him in this way, take a switch in 
your right hand to tap him up w r ith, and walk 
about in the stable a few times with your right arm 
over your saddle, taking hold of the reins on each 
side of his neck with your right and left hands, 
thus marching him about in the stable until you 
teach him the use of the bridle, and can turn him 
about in any direction, and stop him by a gentle 
pull of the rein. Always caress him, and loose the 
reins a little every time you stop him. 

You should always be alone, and have your colt 
in some light stable or shed the first time you ride 
him ; the loft should be high, so that you can sit 
on his back without endangering your head. You 
can teach him more in two hours' time in a stable 



140 TAMING HORSES. 

of this kind than you could in two weeks in the 
common way of breaking colts, out in an open 
place. Tf you follow my course of treatment, you 
need not run any risk, or have any trouble in ri- 
ding the worst kind of horse. You take him a 
step at a time, until you get up a mutual confi- 
dence and trust between yourself and horse. First 
teach him to lead and stand hitched; next ac- 
quaint him with the saddle and the use of the bit ; 
and then, all that remains is, to get on him with- 
out scaring him, and you can ride him as well as 
any horse. 



HOW TO MOUNT THE COLT. 

First gentle him well on both sides, about the 
saddle, and all over, until he will stand still with- 
out holding, and is not afraid to see you anywhere 
about him. 

As soon as you have him thus gentled, get a 
small block, about one foot or eighteen inches in 
height, and set it down by the side of him, about 
where you want to stand to mount him ; step up 
on this, raising yourself very gently : horses notice 
every change of position very closely, and if you 
were to step up suddenly on the block, it would be 
very apt to scare him; but, by raising yourself 



TAMING HORSES. 141 

gradually on it, he will see you, without being 
frightened, in a position very nearly the same as 
when you are on his back. 

As soon as he will bear this without alarm, un- 
tie the stirrup-strap next to you, and put your left 
foot into the stirrup, and stand square over it, hold- 
ing your knee against the horse, and your toe out, 
so as to touch him under the shoulder with the toe 
of your boot. Place your right hand on the front 
of the saddle, and on the opposite side of you, ta- 
king hold of a portion of the mane and the reins, 
as they hang loosely over his neck, with your left 
hand; then gradually bear your weight on the 
stirrup, and on your right hand, until the horse 
feels your whole weight on the saddle : repeat this 
several times, each time raising yourself a little 
higher from the block, until he will allow you to 
raise your leg over his croup and place yourself in 
the saddle. 

There are three great advantages in having a 
block to mount from. First, a sudden change of 
position is very apt to frighten a young horse who 
has never been handled : he will allow you to walk 
up to him, and stand by his side, without scaring 
at you, because you have gentled him to that po- 
sition ; 'but if you get down on your hands and 
knees, and crawl towards him, he will be very 
much frightened ; and upon the same principle he 



142 TAMING HORSES. 

would be frightened at your new position, if you 
had the power to hold yourself over his back with- 
out touching him. Then the first great advantage 
of the block is to gradually gentle him to that new 
position in which he will see you when you ride 
him. 

Secondly, by the process of leaning your weight 
in the stirrups, and on your hand, you can gradu- 
ally accustom him to your weight, so as not to 
frighten him by having him feel it all at once. 
And, in the third place, the block elevates you so 
that you will not have to make a spring in order 
to get on the horse's back, but from it you can 
gradually raise yourself into the saddle. When 
you take these precautions, there is no horse so 
wild but what you can mount him without making 
him jump. I have tried it on the worst horses 
that could be found, and have never failed in any 
case. When mounting, your horse should always 
stand without being held. A horse is never well 
broken when he has to be held with a tight rein 
when mounting ; and a colt is never so safe to : 
mount as when you see that assurance of confi- 
dence, and absence of fear, which cause him to 
stand without holding. 



TAMING HORSES. 143 



HOW TO RIDE THE COLT 

When you want him to start, do not touch him 
on the side with your heel, or do anything to 
frighten him and make him jump. But speak to 
him kindly, and if he does not start, pull him a 
little to the left until he starts, and then let him 
walk off slowly with the reins loose. Walk him 
around in the stable a few times until he gets used 
to the bit, and you can turn him about in every 
direction, and stop him as you please. It rvvould 
be well to get on and off a good many times, until 
he gets perfectly used to it before you take him 
out of the stable. 

After you have trained him in this way, which 
should not take you more than one or two hours, 
you can ride him anywhere you choose without 
ever having him jump or make an effort to throw 
you. 

When you first take him out of the stable, be 
very gentle with him, as he will feel a little more 
at liberty to jump or run, and be a little easier 
frightened than he was while in the stable. But 
after handling him so much in the stable, he will 



144 TAMING HORSES. 

be pretty well broken, and you will be able to 
manage him without trouble or danger. 

When you first mount him take a little the 
shortest hold on the left rein, so that if anything 
frightens him you can prevent him from jumping 
by pulling his head around to you. This opera- 
tion of pulling a horse's head round against his 
side will prevent any horse from jumping ahead, 
rearing up, or running away. If he is stubborn 
and will not go, you can make him. move by pull- 
ing his head round to one side, when whipping 
would have no effect. And turning him round a 
few times will make him dizzy, and then by letting 
him have his head straight, and giving him a lit- 
tle touch with the whip, he will go along without 
any trouble. 

Kever use martingales on a colt when you first 
ride him ; every. movement of the hand should go 
right to the bit in the direction in which it is ap- 
plied to the reins, without a martingale to change 
the direction of the force applied. You can guide 
the colt much better without it, and teach him the 
use of the bit in much less time. Besides, martin- 
gales would prevent you from pulling his head 
round if he should try to jump. 

After your colt has been ridden until he is gen- 
tle and well accustomed to the bit, you may find 
it an advantage if he carries his head too high, or 
his nose too far out, to put martingales on him. 



TAMING HORSES. 145 

You should be careful not to ride your colt so far 
at first as to heat, worry, or tire him. Get off as 
soon as you see he is a little fatigued; gentle him 
and let him rest; this will make him kind to you 
and prevent him from getting stubborn or mad. 



THE PROPER WAY TO BIT A COLT. 

Farmers often put bitting harnesss on a colt the 
first thing they do to him, buckling up the bitting 
as tight as they can draw it, to make him carry his 
head high, and then turn him out in a field to run 
a half-day at a time. This is one of the worst 
punishments that they could inflict on the colt, 
and very injurious to a young horse that has been 
used to running in pasture with his head down. I 
have seen colts so injured in this way that they 
never got over it. 

A horse should be well accustomed to the bit 
before you put on the bitting harness, and when 
you first bit him you should only rein his head up 
to that point where he naturally holds it, let that 
be high or low; he will soon learn that he cannot 
lower his head, and that raising it a little will 
loosen the bit in his mouth. This will give him 
the idea of raising his head to loosen the bit, and 
then you can draw the bitting a little tighter every 
IS K 



146 TAMING HORSES. 

time you put it on, and he will still raise his head 
to loosen it; by this means you will gradually get 
his head and neck in the position you want him to 
carry it, and give him a nice and graceful carriage 
without hurting him, making him mad, or causing 
his mouth to get sore. 

If you put the bitting on very tight the first 
time, he cannot raise his head enough to loosen 
it, but will bear on it all the time, and paw, sweat, 
and throw himself. Many horses have been killed 
by falling backward with the bitting on; their 
heads being drawn up strike the ground with the 
whole weight of the body. Horses that have their 
heads drawn up tightly should not have the bitting 
on more than fifteen or twenty minutes at a time. 



HOW TO DRIVE A HORSE THAT IS VERY 
WILD AND HAS ANY VICIOUS HABITS. 

Take up one fore foot and bend his knee till his 
hoof is bottom upwards, and nearly touching his 
body; then slip a loop over his knee, and up until 
it comes above the pastern joint, to keep it up, 
being careful to draw the loop together between 
the hoof and pastern joint with a second strap of 
some kind to prevent the loop from slipping down 
and coming off. This will leave the horse stand- 



TAMING HORSES. 147 

ing on three legs ; you can now handle him as you 
wish, for it is utterly impossible for him to kick in 
this position. There is something in this operation 
of taking up one foot that conquers a horse quicker 
and better than anything else you can do to him. 
There is no process in the world equal to it to 
break a kicking horse, for several reasons. First, 
there is a principle of this kind in the nature of 
the horse: that by conquering one member you 
conquer to a great extent the whole horse. 

You have perhaps seen men operate upon this 
principle, by sewing a horse's ears together to pre- 
vent him from kicking. I once saw a plan given 
in a newspaper to make a bad horse stand to be 
shod, which was to fasten down one ear. There 
were no reasons given why you should do so ; but 
I tried it several times, and thought that it had a 
good effect — though I would not recommend its use ; 
especially stitching his ears together. The only 
benefit arising from this process is, that by disar- 
ranging his ears we draw his attention to them, 
and he is not so apt to resist the shoeing. By ty- 
ing up one foot we operate on the same principle 
to a much better effect. When you first fasten up 
a horse's foot he will sometimes get very mad, and 
strike with his knee, and try every possible way to 
get it down; but he cannot do that, and will soon 
give up. 



148 TAMING HORSES. 

This will conquer him better than anything you 
could do, and without any possible danger of hurt- 
ing himself or you either, for you can tie up his 
foot and sit down and look at him until he gives 
up. When you find that he is conquered, go to 
him, let down his foot, rub his leg with your hand, 
caress him, and let him rest a little ; then put it 
up again. Repeat this a few times, always putting 
up the same foot, and he will soon learn to travel 
on three legs so that you can drive him some dis- 
tance. As soon as he gets a little used to this way 
of travelling, put on your harness, and hitch him 
to a sulky. If he is the worst kicking horse that 
ever raised a foot, you need not be fearful of his 
doing any damage while he has one foot up, for he 
cannot kick, neither can he run fast enough to do 
any harm. And if he is the wildest horse that 
ever had harness on, and has run away every time 
he has been hitched, you can now hitch him in a 
sulky, and drive him as you please. If he wants 
to run, you can let him have the lines, and the 
whip too, with perfect safety, for he can go but a 
slow gait on three legs, and will soon be tired, and 
willing to stop; only hold him enough to guide 
him in the right direction, and he will soon be 
tired and willing to stop at the word. Thus you 
will effectually cure him at once of any further no- 
tion of running off. Kicking horses have always 



TAMING HORSES. 149 

been the dread of everybody ; you always hear 
men say, when they speak about a bad horse, " I 
don't care what he does, so he don't kick." This 
new method is an effectual cure for this worst of 
all habits. There are plenty of ways by which 
you can hitch a kicking horse, and force him to 
go, though he kicks all the time ; but this don't 
have any good effect towards breaking him, for we 
know that horses kick because they are afraid of 
what is behind them, and when they kick against 
it and it hurts them they will only kick the harder ; 
and this will hurt them still more and make them 
remember the scrape much longer, and make it 
still more difficult to persuade them to have any 
confidence in anything dragging behind them ever 
after. 

But by this new method you can hitch them to 
a rattling sulky, plough, wagon, or anything else 
in its worst shape. They may be frightened at 
first, but cannot kick or do anything to hurt them- 
selves, and will soon find that you do not intend to 
hurt them, and then they will not care anything 
more about it. You can then let down the leg and 
drive along gently without any further trouble. 
By this new process a bad kicking horse can be 
learned to go gently in harness in a few hours* 
time. 

13* 



150 TAMING HORSES. 



ON BALKING. 

Horses know nothing about balking, only as 
they are brought into it by improper management, 
and when a horse balks in harness it is generally 
from some mismanagement, excitement, confusion, 
or from not knowing how to pull, but seldom from 
any unwillingness to perform all that he under- 
stands. High-spirited, free-going horses are the 
most subject to balking, and only so because dri- 
vers do not properly understand how to manage 
this kind. A free horse in a team may be so anx- 
ious to go, that when he hears the word he will 
start with a jump, which will not move the load, 
but give him such a severe jerk on the shoulders 
that he will fly back and stop the other horse ; the 
teamster will continue his driving without any ces- 
sation, and by the time he has the slow horse 
started again he will find that the free horse has 
made another jump, and again flown back ; and 
now he has them both badly balked, and so con- 
fused that neither of them knows what is the mat- 
ter, or how to start the load. Next will come the 
slashing and cracking of the whip, and hallooing 



TAMING HOUSES. 151 

of the driver, till something is broken or he is 
through with his course of treatment. But what 
a mistake the driver commits by whipping his 
horse for this act! Reason and common sense 
should teach him that the horse is willing and anx- 
ious to go, but did not know how to start the load. 
And should he whip him for that? If so, he 
should whip him again for not knowing how to 
talk. A man that wants to act with any ration- 
ality or reason should not ily into a passion, but 
should always think before he strikes. It takes a 
steady pressure against the collar to move a load, 
and you cannot expect him to act with a steady, 
determined purpose while you are whipping him. 
There is hardly one balking horse in five hundred 
that will pull true from whipping ; it is only add- 
ing fuel to fire, and will make him more liable to 
balk another time. You always see horses that 
have been balked a few times, turn their heads 
and look back, as soon as they are a little frustra- 
ted. This is because they have been whipped and 
are afraid of what is behind them. This is an in- 
variable rule w r ith balked horses, just as much as 
it is for them to look around at their sides when 
they have the bots ; in either case they are deserv- 
ing of the same sympathy and the same kind, ra- 
tional treatment. 

When your horse balks or is a little excited, if he 



152 TAMING HOKSES. 

wants to start quickly, or looks around and doesn't 
want to go — there is something wrong, and he 
needs kind treatment immediately. Caress him 
kindly, and if he doesn't understand at once what 
you want him to do, he will not be so much exci- 
ted as to jump and break things, and do everything 
wrong through fear. As long as you are calm, 
and keep down the excitement of the horse, there 
are ten chances to have him understand you, where 
there would not be one under harsh treatment, and 
then the little flare up would not carry with it any 
unfavorable recollections, and he would soon for- 
get all about it, and learn to pull true. Almost 
every wrong act the horse commits is from mis- 
management, fear, or excitement; one harsh word 
will so excite a nervous horse as to increase his 
pulse ten beats in a minute. 

When we remember that we are dealing with 
dumb brutes, and reflect how difficult it must be 
for them to understand our motions, signs, and 
language, we should never get out of patience with 
them because they don't understand us, or wonder 
at their doing things wrong. With all our intel- 
lect, if we were placed in the horse's situation, it 
would be difBcult for ns to understand the driving 
of some foreigner, of foreign ways and foreign lan- 
guage. We should always recollect that our ways 
and language are just as foreign and unknown to 



TAMING HORSES. 153 

the horse as any language in the world is to us, 
and should try to practise what we could under- 
stand were we the horse, endeavoring by some 
simple means to work on his understanding rather 
than on the different parts of his body. All balked 
horses can be started true and steady in a few mi- 
nutes' time; they are all willing to pull as soon as 
they know how, and I never yet found a balked 
horse that I could not teach to start his load in 
fifteen, and often less than three, minutes' time. 

Almost any team, when first balked, will start 
kindly if you let them stand five or ten minutes as 
though there was nothing wrong, and then speak 
to them with a steady voice, and turn them a little 
to the right or left, so as to get them both in mo- 
tion before they feel the pinch of the load. But 
if you want to start a team that you are not dri- 
ing yourself, that has been balked, fooled and 
whipped for some time, go to them and hang the 
lines on their hames, or fasten them to the wagon, 
so that they will be perfectly loose; make the driv- 
ver and spectators (if there are any) stand off some 
distance to one side, so as not to attract the atten- 
tion of the horse ; unloose their check-reins, so that 
they can get their heads down if they choose ; let 
them stand a few minutes in this condition until 
you can see that they are a little composed. While 
they are standing you should be about their heads, 



154 TAMING HORSES. 

gentling them; it will make them a little more 
kind, and the spectators will think that you are 
doing something that they do not understand, and 
will not learn the secret. When you have them 
ready to start, stand before them, and as you sel- 
dom have but one balky horse in a team, get as 
near in front of him as you can, and if he is too 
fast for the other horse, let his nose come against 
your breast; this will keep him steady, for he will 
go slow rather than run on you ; turn them gently 
to the right, without letting them pull on the tra- 
ces as far as the tongue will let them go ; stop them 
with a kind word, gentle them a little, and then 
turn them back to the left, by the same process. 
You will have them under your control by this 
time, and as you turn them again to the right, 
steady them in the collar, and you can take them 
where you please. 

There is a quicker process that will generally start 
a balky horse, but not so sure. Stand him a little 
ahead, so that his shoulders will be against the 
collar, and then take up one of his forefeet in your 
hand, and let the driver start them, and when the 
weight comes against his shoulders, he will try to 
step ; then let him have his foot, and he w T ill go 
right along. If you want to break a horse from 
balking that has long been in that habit, you ought 
to set apart a half-day for that purpose. Put him 



TAMING HORSES. 155 

by the side of some steady horse ; have check-lines 
on them ; tie up all the traces and straps, so that 
there will be nothing to excite them ; do not rein 
them up, but let them have their heads loose. 
Walk them about together for some time as slowly 
and lazily as possible; stop often, and go up to 
your balky horse and gentle him. Do not take 
any whip about him, or do anything to excite him, 
but keep him just as quiet as you can. He will 
soon learn to start off at the word, and stop when- 
ever you tell him. 

As soon as he performs rightly, hitch him in an 
empty wagon; have it stand in a favorable po- 
sition for starting. It would be well to shorten the 
stay-chain behind the steady horse, so that if it is 
necessary, he can take the weight of the wagon 
the first time you start them. Do not drive but a 
few rods at first; watch your balky horse closely, 
and if you see that he is getting excited, stop him 
before he stops of his own accord, caress him a lit- 
tle, and start again. As soon as they go well, 
drive them over a small hill a few times, and then 
over a larger one, occasionally adding a little load. 

This process will make any horse true to pull. 



156 TAMING HOUSES. 



TO BREAK A HORSE TO HARNESS. 

Take him in a light stable, as you did to ride 
him ; take the harness and go through the same- 
process that you did with the saddle, until you get 
him familiar with it, so that you can put it on him, 
and rattle it about without his caring for it. As 
soon as he will bear this, put on the lines, caress 
him as you draw them over him, and drive him 
about in the stable till he will bear them over his 
hips. The lines are a great aggravation to some 
colts, and often frighten them as much as if you 
were to raise a whip over them. As soon as he is 
familiar with the harness and lines, take him out 
and put him by the side of a gentle horse, and go 
through the same process that you did with the 
balking horse. Always use a bridle without blinds 
when you are breaking a horse to harness. 



HOW TO HITCH A HORSE IN A SULKY. 

Lead him to and around it ; let him look at it, 
touch it with his nose, and stand by it till he does 



TAMING HOUSES. 157 

not care for it; then pull the shafts a little to the 
left, and stand your horse in front of the off-wheel. 
Let some one stand on the right side of the horse, 
and hold him by the bit, while you stand on the 
left side, facing the sulky. This will keep him 
straight. Run your left hand back, and let it rest 
on his hip, and lay hold of the shafts with your 
right, bringing them up very gently to the left 
hand, which still remains stationary. Do not let 
anything but your arm touch his back, and as soon 
as you have the shafts square over him, let the 
person on the opposite side take hold of one of 
them, and lower them very gently to the shaft- 
bearers. Be very slow and deliberate about hitch- 
ing; the longer time you take the better, as a 
general thing. When you have the shafts placed, 
shake them slightly, so that he will feel them 
against each side. As soon as he will bear them 
without scaring, fasten your braces, &c, and start 
him along very slowly. Let one man lead the 
horse, to keep him gentle, while the other gradu- 
ally works back with the lines till he can get be- 
hind and drive him. After you have driven him 
in this way a short distance, you can get into the 
sulky, and all will go right. It is very important 
to have your horse go gently when you first hitch 
him. After you have walked him awhile, there is 
not half so much danger of his scaring. Men do* 
14 



158 TAMING HORSES. 

very wrong to jump up behind a horse to drive 
him as soon as they have him hitched. There are 
too many things for him to comprehend all at once. 
The shafts, the lines, the harness, and the rattling 
of the sulky, all tend to scare him, and he must be 
made familiar with them by degrees. If your 
horse is very wild, I would advise you to put up 
one foot the first time you drive him. 



HOW TO MAKE A HORSE LIE DOWN. 

Everything that we want to teach the horse 
must be commenced in some way to give him an 
idea of what you want him to do, and then be re- 
peated till he learns it perfectly. To make a horse 
lie down, bend his left fore leg and slip a loop over 
it, so that he cannot get it down. Then put a sur- 
cingle around his body, and fasten one end of a 
long strap around the other fore leg, just above the 
hoof. Place the other end under the surcingle, so 
as to keep the strap in the right direction ; take a 
short hold of it with your right hand ; stand on 
the left side of the horse, grasp the bit in your left 
hand, pull steadily on the strap with your right; 
bear against his shoulder till you cause him to 
move. As soon as he lifts his weight, your pulling 
will raise the other foot, and he will have to come 



TAMING HORSES. 159 

on his knees. Keep the strap tight in your hand, 
so that he cannot straighten his leg if he rises up. 
Hold him in this position, and turn his head to- 
wards you ; bear against his side with your shoul- 
der, not hard, but with a steady, equal pressure, 
and in about ten minutes he will lie down. As 
soon as he lies down, he will be completely con- 
quered, and you can handle him as you please. 
Take off the straps, and straighten out his legs; 
rub him lightly about the face and neck with your 
hand the way the hair lies ; handle all his legs, and 
after he has lain ten or twenty minutes, let him 
get up again. After resting him a short time 
make him lie down as before. Repeat the opera- 
tion three or four times, which will be sufficient for 
one lesson. Give him two lessons a day, and when 
you have given him four lessons, he will lie down 
by taking hold of one foot. As soon as he is well 
broken to lie down in this way, tap him on the op- 
posite leg with a stick when you take hold of his 
foot, and in a few days he will lie down from the 
mere motion of the stick. 



HOW TO MAKE A HORSE FOLLOW YOU. 

Turn him into a large stable or shed, where 
there is no chance to get out, with a halter or bri- 



160 TAMING HORSES. 

die on. Go to him and gentle him a little, take 
hold of his halter and turn him towards you, at 
the same time touching him lightly over the hips 
with a long whip. Lead him the length of the 
stable, rubbing him on the neck, saying in a steady 
tone of voice as you lead him, " Come along boy ?" 
or use his name instead of "boy" if you choose. 
Every time you turn touch him slightly with the 
whip, to make him step up close to you, and then 
caress him with your hand. He will soon learn to 
hurry up to escape the whip and be caressed, and 
you can make him follow you around withouf ta- 
king hold of the halter. If he should stop and 
turn from you, give him a few sharp cuts about 
the hind legs, and he will soon turn his head to- 
wards you, when you must always caress him. A 
few lessons of this kind will make him run after 
you, when he sees the motion of the whip — in 
twenty or thirty minutes he will follow you about 
the stable. After you have given him two or three 
lessons in the stable, take him out into a small 
field and train him; and from thence you can 
take him into the road and make him follow you 
anywhere, and run after you. 



TAMING HORSES. 161 



HOW TO MAKE A HORSE STAND WITH- 
OUT HOLDING. 

After you have him well broken to follow you, 
place him in the centre of the stable — begin at his 
head to caress him, gradually working backwards. 
If he moves, give him a cut with the whip, and 
put him back to the same spot from which he start- 
ed. If he stands, caress him as before, and con- 
tinue gentling him in this way until you can get 
round him without making him move. Keep 
walking around him, increasing your pace, and 
only touch him occasionally. Enlarge your circle 
as you walk around, and if he then moves, give 
him another cut with the whip, and put him back 
to his place. If he stands, go to him frequently 
and caress him, and then walk around him again. 
Do not keep him in one position too long at a time, 
but make him come to you occasionally, and fol- 
low you around the stable. Then make him stand 
in another place, and proceed as before. You 
should not train \our horse more than half an 
hour at a time. 

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